How can you believe that the Lord is good when a woman who worships Him with all of her heart is beaten by her husband? This is a question I have been wrestling with this month as I saw the effect of abuse. You, too, may have been hurt by a loved one, and have asked this exact question. Let me tell you about my friend named Angel.
When my team first arrived in Uganda, we were welcomed by a loving church family. On the first Sunday of the month, we felt a little bit out of our element sitting in a church filled with people we had never met before. The pastor called all the visitors to stand up for a greeting from the church. We stood up, and instantly, a young woman with the biggest smile skipped over to each one of us shouting chants and praises to the Lord. It was humorous at first to see such joy overflowing from one person, but I grew fond of her African praise screams. I realized that she made me feel at home in that church, and her laughter was infectious. This was a woman I knew I wanted to be like, and a character that I wanted to possess. I too wanted to make others feel as warm and welcomed as she made me feel.
Throughout our time in Uganda, Angel traveled by our side to help us translate as we went door to door in the village to evangelize, served in the worship band at church and in crusades, and became a close friend of ours. Her dedication to the Lord was inspiring. She has a young baby, and even though she must have felt exhausted with all of our missions, she came to every single one with a smile and joy for the Lord. Throughout all of our crusades, she was the first one to jump up and down while praising the Lord, and the first to pray over those in need.
Although I felt like I knew Angel pretty well after spending most days with her, I had no idea what she was dealing with at home. When Angel was young and a non-believer, she married a man who was also not a believer of the Lord. Years later, she became a Christian, even while her husband did not believe. Angel began going to church and spreading the love of Christ with others, yet her husband did not believe in the God that she believes in now. He would sometimes even claim to be a Christian, yet would get incredibly upset and angry when she would be out late at church. However, this man was the father of her child, and the provider of the family. Without him, she would not have any kind of support or financial stability. In a way, as you can imagine, she needed him despite his unbelief and despite the way he treated her.
Our last week in Uganda, we scheduled to have open air crusades Wednesday through Saturday every single night. Guess who showed up to every event that we held? Angel. She was always there, and always ready to go with a cheerful heart and a fire for the Lord. Our last crusade was on a Saturday night and ran rather late as people were being freed from demons and healed. We rejoiced as many people came to know the Lord and heard the gospel for the first time, and we counted it a successful night for the Lord. We all separated as the night went on to rest for the night and praise God for all the work he had been doing.
However, at 2am that night, our pastor received a phone call. It turns out that Angel went home that night to a very drunk and angry husband. He was upset that she was out so far away at our church. She tried to escape from him, but he caught hold of her. He jumped on top of her in their home, pinning her to the ground, so that she could not move. He poured boiling water all over her skin, while punching her face. She was helpless, and begged him to take her to the hospital. He refused, and left her to rot in her pain. Before he left, he kicked her ribs, bruising her rib cage. Her poor baby was left without care as she suffered.
We went to the hospital to visit Angel the next day, not knowing what to expect. Would she be angry at God? Would she curse His name and forget the relationship she had with Him? Would she question His goodness? How could a woman who served the Lord so faithfully be persecuted so much for her faith and dedication?
Entering the hospital, I saw many women uncovered laying in beds stacked all around the room. The room smelt of blood and urine, so much so that my head began to spin and I wanted to faint. We searched through all the women, and finally laid our eyes on our precious Angel. She was laying in a small cot in the corner of a room. My eyes would never have recognized her if I wasn’t with the Pastor who knew where she was. Tears instantly shot through my eyes, but I tried to push them aside to seem strong for the woman who laid before me. Her face was twice its original size, and so distorted. Her skin was boiled off all along her shoulders and back. She looked as though she was in so much pain, and I wanted to run out of that hospital to find the man who had done this to her.
We sat along her bedside, trying to encourage her and say soft words to lift her spirits. Yet, I realized in that moment, it was her that encouraged me. She told us that she has already forgiven her husband, who actually fled and ran away out of fear that he would get caught and put in prison. After all he had done, she had allowed the Lord to bring forgiveness in her heart. She said that because the Lord was with her, she was able to LIVE and STAY ALIVE after all the beatings she endured. THAT was the Lord! Her husband was filled with the enemy, and the devil TRIED to have his way. But Angel’s hope was and is in the Lord, and she declares to use this testimony as proof that the Lord provides. Her faith stands. Her love for the Lord endures. If this would have happened to MANY other people I know, they would have changed their attitude and perspective of life for the worse. The Lord knew that she would not break down, and knew she would use this for good.
I’m asking for prayers for our friend, Angel. Please pray that the Lord will recover and heal her body as quickly and painlessly as possible. Pray that the Lord uses this beating for GOOD and to bring so many others to know His goodness as well. Pray that her husband will flee from his evil ways, and be brought to the Lord wherever he is. Pray for healing in his heart and for the Lord to redeem his life. Pray for all of Angel’s financial needs to be met and a way to provide for her medical bills and daughters. Also, pray for Angel’s baby and other daughter to be raised seeking after the Lord, and to be covered in Jesus’ blood and protection. I would surely appreciate these prayers, as my heart longs for this family to be covered completely in prayer.
I know Angel is not the only one who has encountered abuse for believing in God and for serving Him. There are many of you out there who have covered up things that have happened to you for far too long. Let the Lord use your story to impact others. Proclaim His goodness over your life, and see how he has brought goodness through your pain. Jesus is GOOD. Use your story as a testimony, and help others who have experienced similar pain as you.
We look at Paul in the bible, and think that kind of persecution only happened years ago. Yet, I am seeing persecution happen every single day in this world. The Lord knows how much we can handle, and He will use all things for His glory. Angel’s faith remained strong throughout her suffering, and I find myself even now wanting the faith that she has. Whether she is dancing in a church building yelling praises for the Lord or laying in a hospital bed beaten up – she still chooses to have faith and remain filled with joy. Her identity is NOT found in circumstance, and her joy is in the Lord. I want that.
***If you would like to help support Angel’s financial needs, please send me a private message. I would love to help provide for her in this way.
