 Genesis 6:11-12; Romans 12:19; Psalm 9:9-10
Not only is sexual assault sin, it's equated with murder. Consequences will fall on the one who commits rape! Sexual assault kills by robbing life emotionally, and psychologically, from the victim. The violation creates hindrances and barriers that go beyond the physical body. The victim is often unable to function healthily in society. The victim's mindset is altered and needs therapy of some kind to restore a sense of health. Rape imposes a kind of death on the victim (George Athas). The law God gave in Deuteronomy 22:28-29 was for the benefit of the wronged woman because she wasn't to be abused and then discarded. Tamar begged her half brother, Amnon, to marry her. He cruelly refused and she was abused and discarded (2 Samuel 13:16). The law provided for a victim of sexual assault. The woman was to be supported by her rapist husband and he was never to divorce her. This was her legal right (if she chose to go along with the marriage). If she chose not to marry her rapist, she was still to be supported all her life (Exodus 22:16-17). Tamar was cared for by Absalom, her brother. They had the same mother, Maachah, who was a Princess. The victim's father could object to the union, but the rapist must still financially support the victim (Exodus 22:16-17). In today's society, there is little compassion, and no compensation for rape victims. Hardly are these violators caught and charged. Rape is a devastating thing to live with, especially without being able to make sense of it all. God can compensate the rape victim and care for her for the rest of her life! When Absalom died, I believe God still took care of Tamar. Perhaps she returned to the Palace where her mother, Maachah, and other siblings were. She no longer had the position and place she had before the assault, but she was cared for there. Sexual assault affects everyone in the family. Maachah, as a mother had to have been affected. King David, her father, protected the abuser by doing nothing to punish his son, Amnon. David was just simply angry about it. Tamar's position as a young beautiful woman was now relegated to that of a little better than a servant. I couldn't imagine the psychological challenges and emotional damage she suffered. Later, in Absalom's revolt against his father, King David, he rapes 10 of his father's concubines on top of a roof in broad daylight as revenge for his sister Tamar's rape being ignored. What an ironic twist to David and Bathsheba's sin. The place David first laid eyes on her was from the roof top. Tamar means 'Date Palm'. It suggests food, security and life. I believe inspite of all that befell Tamar, God provided food, shelter, security, and life for her all of her days. God is a restorer of the years the locust has eaten. God hates all sin and even if the rapist is never brought to justice, God will exact punishment on them! The victim may never be privy to God's justice on their rapist, but know that they will suffer the consequences for their crime! Please take some time to read the above verses at the beginning of this blog. May it bring comfort and help to anyone in need. God can handle your pain and He will bring healing into your life, just trust Him to help you.
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 Deuteronomy 2:7
" For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hand. He knows your trudging through this great wilderness. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you; you have lacked nothing." When you look back over the years of your life as a believer, what do you see? How do you assess what life has been for you? Do you feel as if you are the only one who knows your story, and life experiences? I don't know about you, but it is so encouraging for me to know that God knows everything I've been through, He knows all about the challenges, the obstacles, how I've been treated by others, He knows my wilderness journey and everything I've experienced. Why is that encouraging to me? While life is dealing its hand, God is watching it all. He chooses to allow certain events to build me up, grow me, and train me to trust Him more and more. Also, God has so many blessings and blessed experiences for me to enjoy; He also has great ministry work for me to partake in. If I falter and fail, I miss out big time! Has life dealt you a painful blow? Well, tuck yourself in under the shadow of God's mighty wings and He'll strengthen and nurse you back to health. If the people you thought were your friends fail you, and turn their backs, praise the Lord big time because there is always a good reason God separates us from certain individuals. God wants to bring you into another social circle that will better suit the plans He has for you. Trust God to pick your friends, and trust Him when it's time to move on without them. All of life is a test! God reveals Himself and His special plans for us often through testing and trials. I know, it's never easy, but I can personally testify to it being necessary. I have never read in the Word of God about mighty men and women of God who did great things with a social circle in place. Have you? We read that they were by themselves, alone, serving mightily for God. There were no social circles around them. Even David was separated from Jonathan. David was alone with no friends to rely on. In Judges 4:4-24, we read about Deborah and how she, a prophetess and judge in Israel, led timid Barak and the army to victory! She embraced God's calling upon her life and she stayed in tune with God and she knew what to say to the Lord's people. She knew God's Word and she could instruct Barak and remind him of what God said. What social circle do you see standing with her? The Christian life is a life that requires each of us to embrace the calling God has placed upon our lives. To individually accomplish all that God has for us to achieve, will require being alone and in tune to His voice and His voice only. It is not a 'group effort'! There are places in the journey of our lives where friends can't come along. You and I have to know when to walk away from social circles and be on a mission for God! Social circles can be a hindrance to the things God has called us to do. Rejoice when friends drop out of your life. They may even be fellow believers, but if you are a believer who sits in God's presence daily in prayer and the study of His Word, and you start to notice things happening in your social life, you can attribute that to God. He is allowing it for your blessing in the end. There is an exception to this that we can find in the first chapter of the book of Daniel. Daniel had friends who were on the same spiritual page as he was. God had a specific plan for Daniel and his friends that led to a deep revelation about God as a testimony to the steward, the chief of the eunuchs and King Nebuchadnezzar. This was truly for spiritual purposes. God knows what the journey has been for you and all the things you have had to go through and encounter. He will continue to be with you and guide you along the way. Trust God, He knows what He is doing with you. Don't mourn over the losses in your life. God has something specially carved out for you! Take it from me, I am enjoying some wonderful times in my life right now. I look back and see all the things, and people God has removed and set to the side, clearing the way for where He has me for such a time as this. It is wonderful and it is glorious! Do you want to do great things for God? Do you want to accomplish and achieve what you're gifted in? Do you want to rise to a higher level spiritually? Then, you must ask God to help you to embrace what has to happen in your life in order for that to be possible. Keep the faith and keep trusting every area of your life to God! |
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