I have the honour of introducing you to an extraordinary woman who I have come to know and admire and will be guest posting for me today . June Smothers has a love for God that is so fierce. She wants everyone to know this and experience the love God has for themselves.

June has a passion to help others learn to speak the truth, in love, just like Jesus. She wants to create a safe place for those who are broken. Like myself, June has a special place in her heart for survivors of sexual abuse and also for those struggling with mental illness.

I resonate so much with June’s experiences of when she was a child. June shares how she was able to hold onto a truth to help set her free. My hope is that you will find her story as encouraging as I have.

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I Am Free – Guest Post by June Smothers

I experienced sexual abuse between the ages of 3 and 9 at the hands of a babysitter who was a deacon in our church and my Dad’s best friend.  

Sexual abuse robs its victims of the ability to choose.  I was powerless to stop it when it was happening and silent about it afterwards.  I suppose my mind figured out a way to package it up and store it away until I was 29.  That’s when the box it was stored in began to open and memories began to emerge.  

At the time I didn’t understand what was happening, why I was experiencing frequent flashbacks and nightmares; why I was occasionally disconnecting from reality.  I felt imprisoned by these terrors and side effects of abuse that I did not understand.  To not fully remember, to live in that sort of fog is to feel crazy.  And I did.  I felt locked up in a cell that I couldn’t talk about.  I just knew no one could relate.  

What freed me from my chains?

Growing up in a Christian home, I had memorized many scriptures.  Amidst the chaos in my mind, there was also truth stashed away.  God brought verses back to me just when I would need them, and they would speak truth over my fears.  God’s truth was a key that unlocked the cell I was in, in my mind.  And speaking the truth about my abuse opened the cell door wider.  And wider.  

“It was for freedom that Christ set us free.  So stand firm then, and do not be bound again to a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1

God’s truth was a key that unlocked the cell I was in, in my mind.~June Smothers Click To Tweet

Whenever I begin to believe 

•that I’m crazy

•if I can’t fully remember my abuse it must not have happened

•that I’ll never be able to heal from this

•that I’m still powerless

I remember that God set me free.  

“If the Son has set you free, you are free indeed.” 
John 8:36

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June is a wife and mom of 5 from the beautiful state of Utah.  She grew up as a preacher’s daughter and grew up and married a preacher.  Jesus has been and still is the consistent Love of her life and she loves to share His truths with others who need to know how much He loves them.  She also sees it as a great privilege to advocate for those who have experienced sexual abuse.  

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If you enjoyed reading the thoughts on today’s Bible affirmation then why not catch up on other thoughts for previous days.