Even though it was a voice I had never heard over the phone or ever before for that matter, I knew she was hurt, angry, and territorial despite her trembling voice which gave away the fear behind her words.
I was doing something upstairs in my bedroom when my son came in and handed me my cell phone and said it was for me. I asked who it was and he didn’t know so I answered…”hello,” and she simply stated, “stay away from my husband.” My first thought was…which one…whose wife could this be? But she continued on and revealed the little bit of what was going on because she’d found an email between myself and her husband. Not my finest hour.
But you know what? After we hung up, these were my thoughts. Thank God my husband didn’t answer the phone and what was she doing calling me when she should have been talking to her husband? In my righteous indignation, I thought, “if she’d have been the wife he needed, he wouldn’t have come looking for me.” There, right there was my justification for being an intruder in someone else’s mess.
As the day wore on, I grew livid and even more indignant. How dare…how dare THIS man put MY marriage in jeopardy by being so stupid as to leave “evidence” out in the open for his wife to find? How dare she call me and try to put me in my place? Are you getting the irony of this? Do you see the problem here?
My day was spent with my heart doing a new little pittery pattery type of “how to cover my tracks” dance while I thought of ways to make this go away so my own marriage wasn’t affected. Ummm…too late. It was affected when I chose to step outside of the sacred marriage bond and smack onto Satan’s playground.
When I was a little girl, my family would go camping. If they couldn’t find me close by, my mom knew I had traveled to the women’s restroom so I could talk with whoever would listen. She told me she would either come herself or send one of my brothers to come get me. She knew I would be telling those souls who would listen how my daddy was drunk and my parents were arguing. Lord knows what else I may have babbled on about.
During the majority of my school years, I would be set off to the side at a table or desk by myself so I would keep quiet. Ummm…helllloooo, I wasn’t talking to myself, but it was me who invariably wound up separated from the pack.
I once got into a fist fight because of my never ending chatter. Nice way of saying gossip. I have a point.
Yes, I was an adulterer…a very brazen adulterer. I didn’t know my worth. I didn’t know my place. I didn’t understand the full affect of my actions. Yes, I knew right from wrong….however, when you hang with the adulterous crowd, the wrong fades into the background. Birds of a feather most certainly do flock together. But, in the end, I’m responsible for my actions. I own them.
Before you throw that proverbial stone my way, make sure your slate is clean. Would it make it better if you knew the destruction I brought into my own life? Would it be helpful to know the guilt, shame, and regret brought me to the point of a suicide attempt? Maybe you’re thinking….good, you reap what you sew. But my answer to that is, it matters not what you think. You weren’t there. You don’t know why it was permitted in my life.
What I do know is, its part of His redemptive story in me and just like all those years ago telling strangers about my parents arguing, I can’t keep silent about this any longer. It screams to be released and I won’t let it consume me any longer. I was meant for more. And if you find yourself in an adulterous relationship, in case no one has ever said this to you…let me say it. You were meant for more. You are worth so much more than being someone’s side dish. You deserve to be the main course.
I no longer dance on the devil’s playground. Being lulled into a honey trap of deceit, dishonesty, shame, and guilt wields no power only regrets.
These days I dance on God’s amazing dance floor. I have nothing to hide. I twirl and spin as He holds my hand and calls me redeemed, forgiven, precious, a jewel to behold and daughter of the One True King!! I owe Him everything because He gave His ALL for me. Let me tell you, this life….this resurrected life…a bazillion times better than I could have ever imagined. He is all that and beyond. He’s where I find my salvation and here is where I sit, at the foot of the cross where my sins are nailed and forgotten. No sin is worth my joy. Jesus…there’s my joy. Jesus….there’s my life.
If you need a little more insight…take a look at a story written long ago…
John 8:1-11~~“Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, but early the next morning he was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and taught them. As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd.
“Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?”
They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust.
When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”
“No, Lord,” she said.
And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”
Repent, ask forgiveness, and sin no more…yes, it can be that simple. Grace is the pardon for your jail time, but not a license not to change. “Go, and sin no more.” Means you’re not stuck in the pit you created. Means you have an out. Grab your “get out of jail” free card and live the life He created you for…live the beautiful life.
Blessed to be Broken 
Trish, I LOVE reading your testimony! God is glorified!
Thank you Christine!! That means so much to me that God is glorified…that His story is told and I’m just the vessel to be used.
As always your story makes me smile. I know you sharing this was a long time in the coming and I am super proud of you friend. I know many will be touched by this amazing story of redemption.
Thank you Sharon! You know I pushed that “publish” button and then went into panic mode! I truly hope it helps others. Praising God for giving me the courage and then keeping me calm. 🙂
Thank you for having the courage to be open about this. You will never know how much it might help other people. I used to play with fire too. I never really got into adultery physically but emotionally I was there all right. Same as you described. Searching for affirmation and desperately needed to feel good enough and pretty enough and woman enough… thank God that He interfered. It took a lot of heart ache. My husband and me we are now very strong together. He forgave me and we worked our way through our relationship issues. Thanks that he is the loyal loving man that he is we are still together, for I was ready to give up. the ironic thing is that he is a non-believer and I am the believer here. He told me: we promised each other “till death do us part”. We are both alive so we CANNOT and WILL not divorce! We work this out. I read a lot of books on it, among others “the Green Grass Syndrom” and “the Man you always wanted is the Man you already have” , this was really very insightful. Thanks again for sharing.. it really struck a cord in me…
Saskia, thank you so much for sharing your story. God never ceases to amaze me in how He can use anyone to speak into our lives. He totally used your husband to breathe life back into your relationship and I’m so thankful you stuck with your marriage. I’ve seen many of my friends marriages become stronger after the devastation of adultery. I appreciate your kind words and again, thank you so much for sharing. Your marriage is a living testimony of what can happen when you put God first.
What an inspiring testimony to share with others! Thanking God for using your heartaches to be a testimony and an encouragement to others struggling with similar issues! Praying that He will continue to bless you as you as you live out your new life in Him! Love and hugs!🙏🙏