Healing Journey

My Healing Journey
by Harmony Dust

Every journey is different. Every time Jesus healed someone in the bible he did it differently. And so it is with us. There is no secret formula for healing, but I believe that there are steps that we can take and choices we can make that will strength to our lives. Here are just a few of the things that I discovered on my own healing journey.

Relate

There is no substitute for a real and honest relationship with God. He is Lord over my life and so much more. Through reading His word, praying and simply spending time being quiet and still with Him, I have come to know Him as Father, Friend, Comforter, Healer, Redeemer, Provider, and the Lover of my soul. He is not a distant God, sitting in some far off place judging you and me. He is a God of mercy, grace and compassion. He is Immanuel, God who is with us.

Plant

We are not meant to do life alone. Humans are relational beings designed for community. A tree cannot grow unless it is planted, and I strongly believe that my life would not bear the fruit it has if I had not been planted in my church. I am not talking about simply doing the Christian duty of sitting through a Sunday service. I believe that the local church plays an irreplaceable role on this planet. When the local church is healthy, it is a place where people can come to worship, learn, grow, and experience healing, grace, mercy and the unconditional love of God. It is where I have built some of my most meaningful and flourishing relationships with people who know me—imperfections and all—and love me anyway.

Decide

In the bible (John 5), we read the story of a man, lying on a mat, who had been disabled for 38 years. Jesus asks him a question: “Do you want to get well?” At that point, the man starts coming up with excuses, saying that nobody would help him and every time he tried to get better, somebody got in his way. Ultimately, Jesus instructs the man to “take up his mat and walk”. He follows this instruction and is healed.

I believe that Jesus is asking you and I the same question. Do you want to get well? Sometimes we think we want to get better, but when it comes down to it, we have a million excuses as to why we can’t. We become comfortable with our condition and content to remain paralyzed on our mats.

Ultimately, the decision is in our hands. Nobody can want it for us. God can’t force it on us. We must decide to get well.

Replace

Eleven years ago, I believed a lot of lies. They were so woven into the fabric of my being that they became my personal truth. I believed that I was worthless, stupid, and unlovable. My life reflected what I thought to be true because I made choices based on those deep and hidden beliefs.

The bible tells us to “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). It also says that we are to “take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).

There is a process of transformation that requires action on our part. It is up to us to actively replace the lies we believe with truth. (See Appendix B)

Face

In the well-known story of David and Goliath, David faced and defeated his giant with a sling and a stone. Historically, in the days of Exodus, the Israelites had been afraid to enter the promise land because of the many “giants” who inhabited that territory. It was the fear of the giants, not the giants themselves that kept the people from God’s promise for them.
In my own journey, I have had to face some big giants: Sexual abuse, rape, father issues, fear, rejection, abandonment, unforgiveness, and bitterness to name a few. To rattle them off in a list like this is easy, but to actually face each of these head on was been a battle. I can distinctly remember fighting though Los Angeles traffic to make the 1 1/2 hour commute to see my therapist where I had to pay upwards of $60 an hour to face some of my giants. I would much rather have been sitting on my couch eating chocolate ice cream watching reruns of Seinfeld. But if I wanted to walk in the fullness of God’s promises for my life, there were giants to be faced. Sometimes I felt like David—like I was facing a seasoned combatant with weapons as puny as a sling and a stone. But during those times I learned that like David, God has given me the tools I need to face the giants in my life, and that I never have to face them on my own.

Forgive

I used to think that some things were simply unforgivable—rape and murder among them. I felt completely justified in hating the ex-boyfriend who raped me. To forgive him seemed to mean that what he did was okay and it wasn’t.
Eventually, I learned that forgiveness is a vertical transaction between me and God, not a horizontal one between me and another human. God has forgiven me and He asks me to forgive others.

I have heard it said that forgiveness is setting someone free and realizing the prisoner was you. At first I forgave out of obedience, but when I finally forgave, I realized that I was the one being held captive by my unforgiveness. The people that have hurt me were living their lives, going about their merry way, while I was seething with anger, hurt and bitterness. Unforgiveness was holding me prisoner.

Stay

The journey is never over so be gracious with yourself and stay committed to the course. We are all in a process of becoming—becoming healed, becoming whole, becoming closer to God, and becoming all that we are created to be.
God is a gentleman. He never forces us to change or gives us more than we can bear. He walks us through this process one step at a time. In His strength we are able to face our giants one by one.

I could apply 110 steps to healing and read a zillion self-help books, but what I am able to accomplish on my own pales in comparison to what can happen when I invite the transforming, gracious and redeeming power of God into my life. His love transcends knowledge, reason, and human effort.

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations,
for ever and ever! Amen.
Ephesians 3:17-21

What do you believe is standing in the way of your healing? Which of these steps might God be asking you to take today? Comment below...

*To order the Healing Journey cd, or other resources for healing, visit www.iamatreasure.com/store

Porn Convention Update

This weekend, the Treasures team partnered with Craig Gross and XXX Church at the LA Erotica Convention. If you missed out on our instant updates, make sure to follow me on Twitter @youareatreasure

In addition to giving Treasures gift bags to the girls, in all, we gave out over 4,000 “Jesus loves porn star” bibles to convention attendees and men and women in the industry. And as Craig noted throughout the weekend, God’s word will not return void. We are praying that people would be inspired to read the bibles they received and that God’s love and truth would penetrate their hearts!

We saw firsthand, how moving and powerful God’s word truly is. A Treasures volunteer witnessed a special moment when a grown man sitting on a staircase, cradled the bible (which he kept referring to as “this book”) in his hands with tears in his eyes. He was reading God’s word in the middle of a porn convention, perhaps for the first time, and he was visibly moved.

“Jesus is here? At a porn convention…” one girl asked after telling me how horrible the “preachers” standing outside with picket signs had made her feel. Knowing Immanuel, God who is with us, I confidently said, “Yes. He is here, at a porn convention. He is with us.” I could see in this woman’s eyes that this was an entirely new concept to her and the idea that God would meet her there in such a place, seemed to disarm her. Isn’t’ that our God though? Meeting us where we are at, in the middle of our circumstances, and loving us right there, as is. It is this sort of love and goodness that leads to transformation and healing.

Still, there were so many people at the convention who have experienced the opposite of that kind of love. From an ex-reverend who professed to being almost atheist, to a ex-seminary student, to a husband and wife that had been kicked out of their church, to the daughters of pastors, to a woman who had been raped by a pastor and a man who had been raped by a priest. We saw people with real hurts and heartbreak so deep that it has caused them to run from the Only One who can heal that sort of pain. I wonder about the depth and severity of the wounds in their hearts and all I can do is pray. The common thread among all of these people is that they have been hurt, not by God, but by His people.

And, as a friend of Treasures recently posted on my Facebook page, “if I call myself a Christ-follower and treat others like garbage, it is completely reasonable for others to question the positive value of following Jesus because I am telling them by my life that Jesus is unloving, unkind, uncaring, etc. God uses people as an avenue for Him to come to us. I would suggest that God uses people as His most common method of getting in touch with us (with the Holy Spirit being intimately involved in that process).”

I love that idea that WE ARE AVENUES. By our actions and the way we love people, we can either lead people closer to the heart of God, or farther from Him. May we each honestly and carefully examine our own actions and determine where we want our avenues-our lives- to lead people.

Love, Harmony
www.iamatreasure.com

A Legacy of Relationship...

Many of you may remember hearing about and praying for Tiffanie and her battle with cancer. It is with great sadness that I share this…Tiffanie passed away last night at UCLA Hospital.

Tiffanie served briefly on the Treasures outreach team and she has freely shared her story and the beautiful things that God has done in her for the benefit of others. “I am a living example of someone who has been saved from the enemy’s tight grip.” she wrote in 2005.

When she was initially diagnosed with cancer, I went to visit her in the hospital where she was surrounded by family and friends. Her closest girlfriends were preparing to have a fun-filled, “Girls Night Out” right there in the hospital room.

As she battled cancer and fought for her life, she was not alone. Her friends and family rallied around her. There were strong women of God, “Warrior Chicks” standing with her, fighting on her behalf. She was surrounded by immense love and support.

Tiffanie was rich with friendship and community. It was clear to me that she was a woman who valued and invested in relationship. This was most evident in her relationship with God. Those who love her attest that she was a woman of strong faith until her very last breath. She lived abundantly. She lived well.

As we remember Tiffanie and pray for God to comfort her friends and family as they grieve, let us glean from the legacy of relationship she leaves behind. When the storms of life come, and they do, I hope and pray that each of us will have invested well—in our faith in God, in community, in family and friendship—and that we too will live abundantly and well. Let us carry on Tiffanie’s legacy and invest in the things that matter.

Love, Harmony Dust

Incredible Update on the Tyra Show Guest!

For those of you that have watched, (or are about to watch) the Tyra Show today, here is an update on the amazing woman you all saw on the show.

The night before the taping, I "just so happened" to bump into her in the hotel lobby. We spent some really special time talking and praying together. I was won over by her tenacious spirit and her heart's cry to leave a life of prostitution behind. I could truly identify with so much of her pain.

On the show, she agreed to go to a one-month program in CA and we were all happy for the bold steps she was taking in her life.

After the cameras stopped rolling, more of this incredible story unfolded. I was at the airport, getting ready to head back to LA when she called me, saying that she felt a strong connection with me. She said really wanted to go to a faith-based program and asked if I knew of any other residential programs that could take her.

I immediately called my friend Julie with Beauty From Ashes and we were able to secure her a spot at the New Life Center there in FL!!!! This is a long-term, faith-based residential program with an 100% success rate of reuniting children with their mothers when custody has been lost.

I am so thrilled to report that today, more than a month later, this incredible young woman is still in the program and thriving! The journey ahead of her will take commitment, but I am fully convinced that she is equipped, ready and able to conquer what lies ahead of her in God's strength! I know that He is able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all that we can ask, think or imagine!

Love, harmony
www.iamatreasure.com

Romance with the King

A Treasures for You: The Treasures E-devotional

ROMANCE WITH THE KING

Our King wants to romance each one of us. Are you allowing Him?

In Isaiah 54, the Lord proclaims, "For your Maker is your husband...for the Lord has called you like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, like a youthful wife when you were refused."

Unlike man, He will never leave you or reject you. He is pursuing your heart and loves you just as you are…today…in this moment. He is not waiting until you are perfect to enter a romance with you and to pour out His love. He wants you just as you are, right now, with every concern, baggage, and worry.

Spend some intimate time with Him this afternoon. He wants to fill you with His goodness and loving kindness. Let's make today that marker of entering a romance with our King. Let's put aside all our distractions, worries and concerns, bring them to the foot of the cross, and worship the Lover of our Soul, for He is worthy.

Love you and praying that He whispers delightful promises of His everlasting kindness to you today!

Onward!

Written by Dina for Treasures
www.iamatreasure.com

A Desperate Plea...

A DESPERATE PLEA
Friday night’s outreach left me and 2 volunteers standing motionless with tears in our eyes in the middle of a strip club. In the midst of giving out hundreds of gift bags to precious women working in 10 clubs, we came across one woman who moved us deeply. When she first saw us, she thanked us for her gift saying that “we always give great gifts”. She has been in the business for 12 years and we have been visiting her club for the past 6.

“Whether you know it or not, you’ve changed my life” she continued. She explained that because of us, she has come to realize her strength and that she is “good”. She went on to say “I know who you are. And I believe what you believe. I pray to God every night.”

The interaction was all hugs and smiles until her tone suddenly changed and she looked at us desperately. “Pray for me” she whispered. “Pray for me. Please pray for me. I’m lost. I’m so lost. I’m gone. Please, please pray for me.”

Through tears, she repeated her plea again and again, each time with more intensity. Of course we prayed for her and have been since. But the urgency of her appeal stayed with us for the rest of the night. We hope that she will contact us, but until that point, may God touch her heart and life with His loving, transforming hand.

UPDATE ON ROBERTA
Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we were able to bring a donation of $500 and a basket of gifts for Roberta and her daughters to the hospital where she is being treated for her burns. We were not able to visit her personally, but left a message for the family that our team is here to support them in whatever way we can. A nurse told us that Roberta is still in critical condition and is heavily sedated as her body fights to heal. She still needs our prayers.

700 CLUB
For those of you who were not able to catch the 700 Club episode today featuring my story and the work of Treasures, here is a link where you can watch it now.

Thank you all for your prayers and support!


Love,
Harmony and The Treasures Team
www.iamatreasure.com

Sunlight in a shady place...

Outreach Update January 2009

On Friday night we headed out to 12 strip clubs in the Nation’s porn capitol, the San Fernando Valley. We arrived to find that 3 of the clubs were closed down.

While clubs are closing, others are still opening. At one newer club we met the manager who threw his arms around me and said that the club had been having a very challenging night and really needed our visit. He said that we were a “breath of fresh air” and the “Yang to their Yin”.

In the Chinese culture, the relationship between “Yin and Yang” often described in terms of sunlight playing over a mountain and in the valley. Yin (literally the 'shady place') is the dark area occluded by the mountain's bulk, while yang (literally the 'sunny place') is the brightly lit portion. In essence, the club manager called us sunlight in the San Fernando Valley!!!

Thank you all for your prayers and support!

Love, Harmony

PS. Just a reminder that up to 4% of your grocery purchases at Ralphs can go to support Treasures when you enroll in the community partnership program. If you enrolled in the past, you must RE-ENROLL your new Ralph’s Reward Card.

Here’s how:

• - Make sure you are signed up for the NEW Rewards Card
• -Create an account online
• -Once you’ve created an account, sign in and click on Community Contribution Program
• -Then enter your card # and choose Treasures out of Darkness for your organization to link it to your card
• -(Our NPO # is 84628). For questions call 800-660-9003