Our Guest John Burke
JOHN: Now stop and think about that. What kind of woman is she? Well, he saw her as mud, trash. Fit for the dumpster only. No hope. Jesus saw the masterpiece.
DONNA: Mm
JOHN: And He tells Simon a story reminding Simon that he needs forgiveness just as much as she does.
DONNA: Yes.
JOHN: Right?
DONNA: Yes.
JOHN: And then He says, She has the potential for much love because she’s been forgiven much. That’s who she is. That’s her future.
DONNA: Mm. Yes.
JOHN: You know, Simon, you feel like you haven’t had much need of forgiveness, so you don’t have much love in you.
DONNA: Mm
JOHN: And so Jesus called forth the masterpiece in people. And I think that’s a secret of what we can do, too. When we encounter people who, you know, on the outside they’re broken, they’re addicted, I think about Amy who came to our church because we say come as you are.
DONNA: Yes. Yes.
JOHN: Its a statement of grace.
DONNA: Yes. Yes.
JOHN: Well, someone invited her and said that’s what we say. And she said, Well, unless you’re gay. I bet they’ll reject me.
DONNA: Mm
JOHN: And she came to push our buttons. She came to shock us. She brought a friend. They would hold hands.
DONNA: Ah.
JOHN: And she was trying to get a reaction. But, what was interesting is, that instead of people pushing her away they took interest in her as a person.
DONNA: As a person.
JOHN: And she said as a result – Her friend didn’t stay – She kept coming and listening. And she said over a period of a year she heard that God sees her as valuable, as His masterpiece, and she moved closer and closer, until, finally, she gave her life, soul, body, everything to Jesus. And then I watched as she grew in faith in this community that loved and accepted her
DONNA: Uh-huh.
JOHN: Not necessarily what she did, but her, the masterpiece God created her to be
DONNA: Right. Right.
JOHN: The next year He revealed to her that her father had had nine affairs as she was growing up. She knew nothing about that. She started to realize that that was why there was this weird tension between her and her father. Her father had a sexual addiction, and it affected her.
DONNA: Uh-huh.
JOHN: Then two years later she’s in a seminar and the guy talks about bullies, and suddenly she recalls getting off the bus when she was eight years old. There was this bully in the neighborhood. He said to her, Hey. I’m so sorry I’ve been so mean to you – He was older – I want to make it up to you. Come over to my house. I have a gift for you.
DONNA: Oh, no. Oh no.
JOHN: The door slams behind him. Three young teenagers gang rape her.
DONNA: Wow.
JOHN: Eight years old. She completely blocked the memory out.
DONNA: Uh-huh. Uh-huh.
JOHN: She had learned from an evil world that all she’s worth is sex and that men are dangerous.
DONNA: Yeah. Yes. Yes.
Tags: its supernatural, Sid Roth