Beauty From Ashes

"He has sent me to...comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion - to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes..."
Isaiah 61:3

Nailah's Hope*

Nailah was young when her mother passed away. Nailah’s father, now alone, turned to his daughter to fill the sexual void left by his late wife. She was twelve the first time her father molested her. 

Even after he remarried, the abuse didn’t stop. Nailah grew up carrying the grief of losing her mother, and the shame and confusion of being violated by her father. She carried these burdens for 6 years before she met a RiverCross trainer hosting a Freedom Club at her school. For the first time, Nailah heard stories from both the audio dramas and from her classmates that let her know her value is far more than how she has been used. She doesn’t have to be defined by her suffering. 

Now 18 years old, Nailah has found a friend in the Freedom Club facilitator who has reported the abuse to the authorities, helped Nailah settle in at a children’s rescue home, and is walking with her every step of the way as she replaces her ashes with beauty. 

*Although the stories we share are true, some identifying details have been changed.