What if your broken past can be the means for a new beginning?

 

In Fortaleza, Brazil's fifth largest city and the capital of Ceara, along the country's northeast coast ,,,, “Carla fidgeted in her seat. She tugged at her hair, then with her wrist she brushed away the tears glistening in her eyes. The 19-year-old buried her face in shame. Ringing in her ears were Franklin Graham's words: 'Any type of sexual relationship outside of a marriage relationship between a man and a woman is a sin against God.' As a young teenager – to escape the abject poverty of her Brazilian neighborhood – Carla sold herself as a prostitute for three years. Then she met Carlos and he rescued her, The couple married and started a family. What if your broken past can be the means for a new beginning? Now, worlds away from her once sordid lifestyle, Carla couldn't shake the guilt that still haunted her. But with Franklin's next declaration, she perked up. Was there hope? Could she actually be rid of her shame? 'I want you to know that God loves you and will forgive you of that sin,' Franklin said. 'He will cleanse you, He will set you free from the guilt, and He will heal your heart and give you a new life and a new beginning. But you've got to be willing to repent of your sins and put your trust in God's Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.' When Franklin extended an invitation to the Festival of Hope audience to come forward and surrender their lives to Jesus, Carla turned to Carlos and said she wanted to go down front. God had been tugging at Carlos' heart as well, but the 21-year-old hesitated. He shook his head and said he wasn't ready. All of a sudden, the couple's young daughter began to jerk. This had happened before. It was an epileptic seizure, and as always it filled Carlos with fear. He looked toward Heaven and cried out: 'God, if you will stop this seizure, I will go forward and will give my heart to Jesus. Please, God.' Little Claudia stopped shaking. She lay perfectly calm, with a smile emerging. As relief flooded over Carlos, he and Carla heard Franklin beckon from the floor of the Arena Castelao, 'Some of you still need to come. We'll wait. You come.' Carlos jumped out of his seat, took his wife's hand and together they bounded down the long flight of steps to the soccer field below. There they met Adoneas, a volunteer Festival counselor, and with his help, they prayed to receive Christ as their Savior.” Carlos and Carla were among the 83,000 individuals who attended the two-day Festival. Accepting God's love really isn't hard to do. All we need is to be honest with ourselves and willing to ask Him for His love to fill us. A new life and a new beginning can be yours as we begin this new year of 2023.

Be Well.