For many years, I viewed my life through the lens of pain.
I saw childhood abuse, child sexual abuse, domestic violence, loss, fear, and broken relationships. Those experiences shaped how I understood myself and the world around me. I searched for answers, trying to understand why people abuse others and why so many survivors continue to carry the weight of their past.
The more I searched for answers through human understanding alone, the more questions I seemed to have.
It wasn’t until my faith in Jesus Christ began to grow that my perspective slowly changed, filling me with hope for healing and renewal.
A Different Way of Seeing
Several years ago, I crossed paths with a woman named Melanie Fagen through her blog, She Breathes Hope. She used a simple phrase that stayed with me long after our conversation had ended.
The lens of faith.
I don’t know exactly what she intended by those words, but God used them to change how I viewed my own story.
Those three words challenged me to look beyond my pain and begin asking a different question.
Instead of asking, “Why did all of this happen to me?”
I began asking,
“Lord, what do You want me to understand?”
Looking Through the Lens of Man
When I looked at my life only through human understanding, I saw myself primarily as a victim.
I focused on everything that had been done to me.
While those experiences were real and should never be minimized, they were not the whole story.
Human understanding helped me recognize trauma, unhealthy relationships, and the lasting effects of abuse. Those insights were valuable, but they could not heal my heart.
I needed something more.
Looking Through the Lens of Faith
As I grew in my relationship with Christ, I began to see my life differently.
God wasn’t asking me to deny what had happened.
He was inviting me to understand it through His truth.
The abuse I experienced did not define my identity.
The mistakes I made did not determine my future.
My past was no longer the end of my story.
Through God’s grace, I began to recognize unhealthy patterns, understand how childhood experiences had influenced my adult life, and see how God could redeem even the darkest chapters of my journey.
Understanding abuse became part of my healing, not because I finally had every answer, but because I learned to trust the One who does.
Truth Brings Clarity
Healing begins with truth.
Not the truth we wish were different.
The truth that brings hidden things into the light.
As I honestly acknowledged my past, I also discovered that understanding abuse was never meant to leave me trapped there.
It was meant to help me recognize unhealthy patterns, make wiser choices, establish healthy boundaries, and move toward healing.
Truth became the doorway.
God’s grace made healing possible, reminding me that I am loved beyond my faults and mistakes.
More Than a Survivor
For years, I believed my story was about surviving abuse.
Today, I believe it is about something much greater-trusting that God’s power can truly bring complete healing and redemption, even from the deepest wounds.
It is the story of God’s faithfulness.
He met me in my darkest moments, renewed my mind, restored my hope, and gave purpose to the pain I once thought would define me forever.
When I look through the lens of faith today, I no longer see only what was done to me.
I see the God who never left me.
Looking Through a New Lens
Abuse may shape part of your story, but it does not have to define your future.
Understanding what happened is important.
Recognizing unhealthy patterns is necessary.
But lasting healing begins when truth meets God’s grace.
When we choose to see our lives through the lens of faith, we begin to discover that even the darkest chapters can become a testimony of hope, healing, and redemption.
The light of Christ does not erase the past.
It illuminates the path forward.
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