Journey to Forgiveness: 21 Milestones to Freedom with David Peterson, Part 1

Intro welcome to today with Marilyn and Sarah we are so very very happy to have you with us today Partners I just want to say thank you so much you help us to cover the Earth with the word and connect everyone to the heart of God we couldn't do what we do without our partners and it's really cool when I travel and partners come up and like hey how's your mom how you doing and it's Partners so thank you again and again you're watching today because partners are saying yes to helping us uh cover the Earth with word and connect everyone to the heart of God so thank you again and again and here's a really encouraging testimony Lou called our prayer Center uh for and asked for prayer for her daughter to find a job after receiving prayer her daughter was hired two hours later how cool is that talk about timely and you might be watching right now and you need a job maybe you have a relative a kid a parent you know a niece neph that needs a job maybe you're watching right now and you're struggling with your health uh you've got some bad diagnosis or pains in your body that are very hard for you disturbing and some of you have been diagnosed with chronic pain um and I just want to encourage you to hop on the phone and get on the website we want to pray for you because we know that God answers prayer and there's nothing too big or too little too difficult or too simple uh for God to do in our life so just encourage you hop on the phone get on the website give us the opportunity and privilege to get to pray for you and in just a moment we're going to be joining an interview with uh David Peterson who wrote a book called journey to forgiveness H sounds like a really good good subject for all of us and I'm really excited because my daughter Isabelle is joining on this interview so I know God is going to tremendously bless you and encourage you you need to put your remote control down and let now available the road to wholeness healing from trauma the first book from Sarah and Isabelle bowling through a unique fiction and non-fiction approach the road to wholeness looks at the story of the Good Samaritan through the lens of both modern allegory and foundational Bible teachings come to understand that Jesus still heals broken hearts exchanges ashes for beauty and provides healing for the shattered places in your life learn to recognize the history of your trauma so your healing can begin get yours today most important thing you can do in your life is have a personal deep connection relationship with Jesus you know many of us we've asked Jesus to come into our hearts in the past maybe you kind of need to make a reboot a start over some of you have never asked Jesus to come into your heart come into your life and this is the most important decision that you can make in your life please get on the phone give us the privilege of an opportunity to pray with you for Jesus to come into your Meet David Peterson life hey there thank you so much we're glad to have you joining today with Marilyn and Sarah and Isabelle my daughter Isabelle is joining us today as well totally stoked and we have a totally amazing guest You're Gonna Love David Peterson thank you so much for hanging out with us nice to be with you B very good to have you um not everybody in our audience knows kind of who you are so can you give us just a little bit of a short biography and I'm very very happy to get into journey to forgiveness what a powerful book but just tell us who you are first well I'm a spearfield Lutheran Pastor from chesak Virginia have four Sons um wonderful wife and um it's just a joy to come and be with you today yeah and where did you grow up kind of well I'll tell you what I've been around um I was born and raised in Southern California transplanted to Western New York when I was 15 around the area of Jamestown and buffalo Jame jamestown's the home of of Lucille Ball and um then ended up in Pennsylvania going to college at teal College in Western Pennsylvania and um Gettysburg Lutheran Seminary um which is uh everybody who comes through there ends up with h also a secondary degree in civil war history you know there's of of so much history in that area and then uh served two congregations in U south central Pennsylvania and um then took a call to serve a congregation in Chesapeake Virginia primarily military um and uh great bunch of folks uh love the Lord just chasing hard after him yeah yeah and you've had some experience in the in the realm of trauma and crisis and doing some some really Hands-On greedy what is what did that kind of look like for you well i' gone through um professional chapy formation through CPE and and uh board certification done chapy in um retirement communities nursing homes uh dementia units as well as hospitals was at Penn State Milton Hershey a medical center in Hershey Pennsylvania um also had done some work at CAD Trauma Center in Washington state um uh but also my wife and I had had a Ministry with uh we were recruiting training placing and supervising chaplain in five states across the country um in the area of of um Ministry to um older adults W and uh So currently uh my experience has been uh 20 years as a part-time Hospice chaplain which was just a joy I never expected that it would be such a joy but I had an opportunity to encounter some wonderful folks along the way every time I'd enter a home I always thought about Moses when he was told take off your shoes you're on Holy Ground wow to be invited into a person's living space um as they're going through such a sacred time in their life um to me was a high honor Matthew 25 reminds us where Jesus is already promised to be which is among the last the least the lost the ones who are forgotten um the the hurting the dying um but then also U my experience has also taken me to um Fire EMS and police chapy over the years so I know it's a mouthful it's it's a little bit right yeah but you might be watching right now and maybe you're um kind of going through a season where you have loss where you're struggling with a loved one who is sick or maybe yourself and you're kind of on the cusp of maybe um going through some hospice things or some death issues or maybe you're having some difficulties navigating a loved one who might have Dementia or Alzheimer's and we would love to pray for you so hop on the phone get on the website it is a difficult season but it is also an opport opportunity for God to really do some incredible things and help you in this kind of in Journey this part of the journey because sometimes we don't like we don't know what we're doing but we're here and so we want to pray with and for you and you know David you wrote a book Journey to Forgiveness called journey to forgiveness um is there something in your life that you struggled with in terms of forgiveness that kind of like is a little bit of a impetus or a springboard for this book oh absolutely I couldn't write this as you know a a casual Observer by any means um um I had a have an issue it's called U essential tremor and uh essential tremor um is a neurological um issue deep in the thalamus of the brain and so what it does is it sends impulses out through your hands and your arms and sometimes in the The Voice or the head of Tremors and so growing up um I've always had it in fact it runs in family my grandfather had it who was just loved the dear man so much but unfortunately that's just one of those things that gets passed on and um so over the years it's provided some very embarrassing times um I you know get teased at school um people would be like oh do you have DTS they I'm like I'm 9 years old wow and um or you get questions like oh are you cold are you what are you afraid of um various issues like that um at times I would get bullied or sometimes even in school teachers that just didn't know and there wasn't a whole lot of information about this teachers that didn't know and didn't you know were insensitive to it um would call it out uh I was in marching band and I was in concert band and I had a band director that that um was young didn't know and um would call it out in public and so it was uh it was really hard and it was very very painful so you have those things but then um when I was 12 I was targeted by a pedophile and um uh very unfortunate situation um someone that was able to use um things that I was very vulnerable the point um affirmation really meant a lot um to me and he provided some of that um also alcohol and pornography and um it was way of grooming and luring and and um it's just unfortunate but the reality is the statistics tell us that one in four women have been targets of molestation um they were as children and one in six men um were uh molested as boys and chances are good that's highly under reported that it probably is the statistic is is much more um higher than that so you know the issue is definitely out there it was really hard for me um so I share in the book and my testimony is probably like three sentences long if you read it but I've had a good number of people um identify with that in fact I've been able to share my testimony with like Pennsylvania State Police and and various other law enforcement folks to just raise awareness of the issue but even though I'd been through pastoral care and counseling um the like I said the event happened when I was 12 didn't come to light until I was 19 and that was the first steps toward healing being able to address it and then to get some good um counseling and pastoral care going and then I go through College and Seminary and I'm fixed right but unfortunately that just wasn't the case um now fast forward and I'm 30 I would say I'm 35 I have um couple of kids yeah and I find that at times I'm short-tempered with folks um angry and hurting but Hallelujah God had a way at that point moving in yeah you know you might be watching right now and maybe you've been molested you've been a Target um and we would love to pray for you um hop on the website get on the phone um we're going to continue this interview and I just want to encourage you that God absolutely can help you to forgive and to help you to walk in Freedom um there's nothing the trauma that has happened to you is not more powerful than the design that God put in you and it's very important for you to have that settled in your soul and we would love to pray for you so hop on the phone get on the website come right back and talk through some key things with forgiveness to help you today what does it mean to forgive what are the consequences of refusing to do so for your gift of $35 or more we will send you journey to forgiveness 21 Milestones to Freedom by David Peterson this hopeful book is perfect for anyone with the desire to overcome trauma find Freedom from unforgiveness and walk in healing with Christ Christ we will also send you Sarah and Isabelle's book road to wholeness Marilyn's teaching CD Grace to forgive and our forgiveness scripture card for your gift of $120 we will include our healing quilt filled with healing scriptures this custommade quilt will keep you warm and look beautiful displayed in your home let your guard down be honest with yourself others and God find New Life today in the undeniable power of forgiveness call or click today for this life-changing Welcome resource welcome back to today with Marilyn and Sarah we are so honored that you're joining us today we're here with David Peterson and he's sharing more about his story and before we get into um our time of conversation I really want to minister to every person watching I know that there are many of you who you've experienced Trauma from parents um many of you who grew up in the foster care system your foster parents were the ones who hurt you and who traumatized you and I want you to know that it was not your fault and that the Lord has healing for you he has something for you that is new fresh a new anointing a new identity and he wants to know you and he wants you to know him as father so get on the phones get on our website we want to pray for you today that you would receive healing in that area of trauma and that you would know the Lord as father and David before we broke wait this is my daughter oh my goodness I love you I love you too you're so great you're so great before we um get started thanks Mom I needed that right yeah oh just let the Holy Spirit sit for a minute yeah thank you Lord um you had mentioned a little bit about what you had been through and when we broke you were about 35 years old um and there are there are side effects to trauma that happens when you're a kid um and anger and resentment did you experience any of that oh absolutely and I found that um you know I'd be easily offended I felt like I was holding a lot inside and of course I'm in Ministry you're going to experience folks who will find your last nerve and park and camp out on it yep and um but I found I came to realized that I was caring a lot and um but I was a I turned into a user I was using anger energy wow and I was using the power of it and um you know yes anger anger is a god-given gift and there are times when it's appropriate but you can it can also become like a nuclear power plant that can take over your life because at the root it gets us hooked um and that may be part of the problem is we have this idea well if I can just keep putting up Shields keeping people at a distance I'm not going to be hurt um and when you do that a little piece of you dies every time and so I went to my pastor um actually my uh my mentor and uh at that point I think he was like 80 85 and he'd been in Ministry I'm te years and I said um I'm coming to realiz I said I think I'm a junkie I'm I'm a junkie on this anger energy and um what have you done how have you found that it's helpful to deal with that and it was that point he's he was just a wonderful man you talking about Born Again filled with the Spirit Lutheran Pastor served years and years so he was kind of like he gave a little checkle and he said well well he said I've often found that by saying the words I release you from my wrath is a good place to start because sometimes the enemy comes in and will start to plant all of those all of those thoughts that want to get us onto an illegitimate source of an of anger energy and so being able to say those words and get them out makes a bold declaration in fact that's one of the milestones in uh of the 21 milestones in Journey to forgiveness is uh I release you from my wrath and um also vengeance is mine says the Lord I will repay when we turn it over to the Lord and allow him to do that it doesn't it obviously does doesn't say that what was done was right it doesn't say you have to reconcile it doesn't say that that you have to be completely healed in any way but just those powerful statements um I release you from my wrath it turns that person over to one who is much better at being able to know the bigger broader picture of both you as well as the person who hurt you yeah and what about you know when Forgiveness and Forget you release someone and you say I release you from my wrath does that mean you forget what happened what about the phrase forgive and forget yeah I'm so glad you brought that up because it doesn't say that you're healed it doesn't say that you've forgotten but at least it points you in the right direction which is the direction of healing and wholeness you know um sometimes in the church we get so excited about signs and wonders and I do too I'll be honest with you and they do happen yeah but we have to understand it's not just about the Shazam it's also about the Shalom wow which is the wholeness and the peace and even just being able to get that out and acknowledge it like I said it doesn't you know it doesn't say what happened never happened in fact it doesn't say you have to reconcile with that person in some cases reconciling is probably the last thing it may be the last thing that needs to happen with that person which is really going out there and saying something you are you are a child of God and if you're being abused um it's very real and just simply acknowledging that and saying that says I am made in God's image I'm a real person that's so essential because I think when when we experience abuse and we experience trauma um there's so many dynamics that start to play into our thoughts our emotions our perspective and if we're not careful it shapes our Outlook exactly you know it shapes and and we don't realize we could be angry we could be withdrawn we could be isolating we could be you know depression the whole I mean there's a whole spectrum of things that go with um abuse and and the whole whole thing so if you're watching right now and you find yourself navigating and struggling with these issues isolating having anger feeling less than um kind of a a side person disappearing we want to encourage you to hop on the phone get on the website we want to pray for you that God would really breathe life into you and really inform and uh strengthen the design that God put in you and and really remember this as well and this is cliche but so important no weapon formed against you can prosper and what the devil meant for evil God can turn and use for good and Nehemiah it says that God turned the curse into a blessing and I just want to encourage you that God can absolutely breathe life into your soul and resurrect what feels so fully dead so hop on the phone get on the website we want to pray for you and David if you had one thing to tell somebody just kind of as we finish here if you had one thing to tell somebody who's struggling with forgiveness what would you say to them please forgive us as pastors and counselors for the times that we've ever said well you just have to forgive and move on forgiveness we're coming to realize is much more uh there's much more going on um there's biochemistry going going on with dopamine we're coming to realize dopamine um which is has an end goal in mind either of going after Vengeance or seeking to reconnect with a person Vengeance I'm sorry the dopamine does that oxytocin is involved we're realizing with the neuro neurotransmitters in the neurochemistry that's going on um as Psalm 139 says you are wonderfully and fearfully made and it's not only that we learn things from our modeled by our families um with that also our SES our senses and um the things we take in there it's it's not as simple as well just get over it it just you have to forget there's so much more and we tried to bring that out in this book yeah and it's kind of a bit of a journey too absolutely I talk about keeping your forgiveness fresh because sometimes it can be a little stale I forgave them and then you're like wh got to kind of absolutely re REO back and kind of think about that so I just encourage you if you're struggling with any any forgiveness issues in your life and sometimes you don't want to admit it you're like oh no I'm fine I already did that but we want to pray for you if you see these symptoms you know that kind of creep up and say it feels like unforgiveness we would love to pray for you so hop on the phone get on the website and and of course when you do grab your copy of Journey to forgiveness it will help you today what does it mean to forgive what are the consequences of refusing to do so for your gift of $35 or more we will send you journey to forgiveness 21 Milestones to Freedom by David Peterson this hopeful book is perfect for anyone with the desire to overcome trauma find Freedom from unforgiveness and walk in dealing with Christ we will also send you Sarah and Isabelle's book road to wholeness Marilyn's teaching CD Grace to forgive and our forgiveness scripture card for your gift of $120 we will include our healing quilt filled with healing scriptures this custommade quilt will keep you warm and look beautiful displayed in your home let your guard down be honest with yourself others and God find New Life today in the undeniable power of forgiveness call or click today for this lifechanging resource we just finished taping an Closing Prayer amazing program with David Peterson David would you please pray for our viewers thank you I'd be honored Come Holy Spirit release the power of the Kingdom right here right now and into the lives of every single viewer watching today you know the pain you know the difficulty that they've experienced you know the offenses and how they've been wronged but thank you Lord that you your triumphant cry from the cross father forgive them for they know not what they do thank you Lord for your words of Mercy to us thank you for your healing your power especially for the power of the Resurrection your words because I live you too shall live and I am the resurrection and the life bring each person into complete wholeness now in Jesus mighty name amen amen amen and we're just so so happy that you joined us on this interview on this program so thank you again and again and we're thankful for you joining us as well because we really want you to walk in freedom freedom from unforgiveness as well as victory and so I just encourage you if you have a need in your life and you're like well you know I think this is too small or you know this seems like insurmountable too big no matter what the need is we want to pray for you so hop on the phone get on the website and of course grab your copy of Journey to forgiveness a powerful resource to help you live in forgiveness [Music]