I was born and raised in India, a land of many religions, where culture and traditions are the most important part of life. Most of the Christian community mix Christianity and traditions, which I believe are two different things. Traditions are man made but Christianity is God made. I'm all for tradition but when it contradicts every thing our Lord Jesus is about then something is wrong. He is about loving people just the way they are, about hating sin but loving the sinner, about second chances. Many Indians have gone through hardships as a result of a society that condemns a person in the name of Jesus, the very Jesus who said he did not come in this world to condemn the world, but whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life. Jesus friends did not just include the rich and the privileged ones or people who were educated, his friends included people from all walks of life. I was raised in a society where male is dominant, arranged marriages, sexual, mental and spiritual abuse took place but women were supposed to tolerate it and not mention it, all in the name of Christianity and traditions. Only very few women are very blessed as I am who went through all that and made a decision to get out of it , but that decision came with a heavy price, being disowned by that society, by people we love, our families and labeled as outcasts and traitors. Although I live in a great country now, where there is freedom but I know many Indians who still continue to bind themselves in traditions which is making them blind to the truth about our Lord Jesus and the freedom and forgiveness that comes from his love for all of us.

I consider myself very blessed, I have scars but only as a constant reminder of the fact how Jesus healed me and opened my eyes to the truth about his love. He has blessed me with a wonderful husband and a handsome little son. I look at our son and see new beginnings. I don't have the blue prints for his life, only God has the authority to do that. I'm in a position to give him an opportunity and freedom to be what God intends for him to be, a freedom I never had. I'm very thankful to God for that. I'm glad for those hard times, because of those hardships I experienced the Lord's love and forgiveness for which I'll always be grateful.