🎓BIO: Kristine

What brought you to RMI and how did your Restoration Journey begin?

Before I came to RMI, I didn't know what a Restoration Journey entailed. I didn't know that my Lord and His Son loved me so much that they could no longer watch me destroy my marriage and family all by myself. My Restoration Journey began a few years ago. After 18 years of marriage with four beautiful children, my ex-husband's hope had vanished. After yet another aggressive outburst of anger from me, he no longer held any hope that I would change. And that he would stop the physical and emotional abuse that eventually became a daily occurrence. He no longer believed me in convincing him that things would get better and that I would change. And after he decided it was safer for him and the children to file for divorce, I was left hopeless and desperate. I knew I needed help. Because the behavior expressed in the "No one can tell me what to do" attitude I had displayed within the family didn't align with the Christian behavior I displayed to everyone outside the home. The urgency of soon becoming a divorced, single mother made me cry out to God for help. So I could save my marriage. I needed to know how to become the woman from Proverbs 31. When I began following the lessons and journaling about them, it quickly became clear that I was 100% to blame for the destruction and torment of my former husband, children, marriage, and myself. But it also gave me hope again. Because with The Lord, nothing is impossible. That's what I initially believed in my head, but gradually, through reading the lessons, learning the principles, and meeting like-minded women, I also came to believe it in my heart. He loves me and wants to make me a beautiful bride. So He can give me back to my former husband.

What has RMI and/or Encouraging Woman done to help you, and what has it meant to you? 

Through the principles I've learned here, the lessons and journaling about them, reading the book "How God Can and Will Restore Your Marriage," and the online meetings, I've gained hope that nothing is truly impossible for God. I've been able to let go of the empty feeling I've had for years, which I've tried to fill with the expectation that someone or something could solve it. There is only One person who can make me happy. And He is my Beloved. Many moments of frustration and irritation arose from questions that remained unanswered. He has given me the answers with everything I've learned so far at RMI. I no longer feel the need to defend myself, prove myself, or convince others of what I think or feel. I know who I am. And what has become important to me is what He thinks and feels about me. That gives me the peace and tranquility I've been searching for all these years.

How have you, and how has your life changed, since learning the promises and applying the principles from RMI?

Since becoming an active member of RMI, I've become more readily and readily the one to agree with decisions others make that affect me. I no longer feel the need to share my opinion unless asked. And even then, I'm increasingly able to keep my mouth shut and agree. The most important principle I've learned is "Winning Without Words." If I want something badly, my Lord is the source from which I expect to receive it.

My trust in my Lord as my Beloved and Protector grows ever stronger. My fears of what people think of me or about me have less access to my heart. His Word gives me the peace I need. I know He will never leave me and that whatever happens in my life is for my good. All the promises and principles I've learned here have brought me closer to the heart of my Beloved. And that is something I've always longed for. The emptiness I used to feel is gone. His spirit lives within me. And through all His promises, I can know that He loves me and longs for me. And that is a wonderful feeling.

Why are you interested in becoming a Minister?

I've always longed to serve His kingdom. To tell those around me about His Son and the gospel. The passage in the Bible where My Beloved told his disciples to go out into the world and tell them everything they'd seen Him do and heard Him say has always appealed to me. But I just didn't know how or when that moment would come for me to do it. I never considered myself to have a talent that He could effectively use to share the gospel. But near the end of my marital crisis, I realized that what I had experienced, however painful and sad, might be what I could use to help other women. There are many women like me searching for hope. And I want to give that to them, just as it was given to me. But in their own language. Working as a translator has brought me so much closer to the heart of my Lord. It has given me so much love, affection, goodness, and wisdom. And I don't want to withhold all this from other women. There is only One who can truly love us. And that's our Heavenly Husband💕.

Who is the FIRST in your life? How did this happen?

My Beloved, my Sweetheart, my Love is first in my heart. I never learned before I got married that The Lord could be my first love by being my Heavenly Husband. After my divorce was finalized, I felt like a single mother for a long time. Abandoned by her husband. But my Lord knew that I couldn't let go of the desire for a husband unless I received something else in return. And thankfully, I didn't have to. Five months before I came to RMI, He gave me the Bible verse Isaiah 54:5, "For your husband is your Maker; the Lord of hosts is his name; and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel; the God of the whole earth shall he be called. For the Lord has called you as a woman forsaken and afflicted, as a wife of her youth after she was rejected, says your God. 'For a little while I have forsaken you, but with great compassion will I take you to myself; In an outpouring of wrath I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on you, declares the Lord, your Redeemer. At that moment, in my enthusiasm, I clung to that promise. And every day I fall more and more in love with Him.

Are you currently "seeking" to restore your own marriage? WHY or why not? 

At this time, I'm not seeking restoration for my own marriage. I learned the principles and much of the promise that can teach me to become a beautiful bride for my Lord, nowhere else. And I haven't read and written all the lessons yet to know what my Lord expects of me as a godly wife for my former husband. The pain and sorrow from the wounds before I came to RMI are lessening daily, and instead, I feel abundant joy. I'm no longer the contentious, rebellious woman I was. But my Lord can make me even more beautiful with His Word.

Which resources helped you the most? Which are your favorites?

When the Lord led me to RMI, I started reading the lessons and keeping journals. After my divorce and gaining my own income, I began tithing. After doing this, it became easier for me to read the lessons, journal, work as a translator, and live my own life with my children.

But what helps me most during my Restoration Journey with Him is reading the Encourager and the Devotionals daily. Reading these two tools gives me the strength and hope to move forward on this journey every day.

What would you like to say to a woman who is reading your BIO? How would you begin ministering to her?

Maybe start with Dear…..

Dear sister bride, I am so happy that I found Hopeatlast.com in the midst of my despair, pain, and sorrow. I am eternally grateful to my Lord for answering and looking after my misery. It is no coincidence that you ended up here. He has looked after you, too. He has heard your prayers. And He longs to hold you in His arms and shower you with His love. The fact that you are in a marital crisis is a blessed fact. God can restore your marriage. But the most important thing is restoring your relationship with Him. The One who can give you true love and all the other things you long for. I want to encourage you not to give up on restoring your marriage. But while you are on this journey with Him, start reading the lessons. Journaling about them will change your life. And secondly, read His Word daily. It will heal all the wounds you have received. But His Word will make you strong. He wants to give you all the promises He has for you. He stands beside you with an outstretched hand. Take His hand and find the love so you can receive the abundant life He has promised you.

READ more about #Kristine in her ongoing Encouragement Praise Reports to witness her journey as it unfolds!