 Good morning to you. God bless you. God has a wonderful and powerful ministry today for you. Welcome to Hope Today. I'm Tom Hollis. I'm here with Amy and Sydney. Sydney, we're gonna have a great time today. We truly are. You know, it has been three months since those devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. And coming up on Hope Today, you're gonna hear an update on the tragic situation from World Vision and how they are providing aid relief and spiritual support to the thousands of families and children that have been ravaged by the catastrophe. You definitely don't wanna miss it. Plus, we're gonna talk about overcoming child sex abuse and stepping into freedom. Christian recording artist and music evangelist, B.J. Ponds, and she's from Pittsburgh. It's just gonna join us to share her journey of how she's helping others through her ministry heal from trauma. She's also gonna share how God is moving in her ministry. And you know, Amy, I'm just, I love these stories of just, even in the midst of tragedy, even in the midst of devastation, we always see God's hand is truly at work and everything. God's hand truly is at work. And I love getting a little glimpse, a picture of what's going on in the world globally with God moving. I know God is moving at home this week, you know, for all of the mothers. It's Mother's Day this coming Sunday. We wanna wish you the best Mother's Day ever. We're thankful for all that you do and the sacrifices that you make. It does not go unnoticed. And God is for you. God is with you. He's gonna strengthen, Tom, all the mothers. That's true. That's a good reminder for all you kids out there it's Mother's Day is coming. But I was talking to BJ before the show, her mother for her birthday, like she has eight children that are ministers. And she said she wanted a revival for her birthday. You might have to, if we have a chance to ask her about that. What's your name BJ's mama? I'll tell you what. How do you raise eight kids in the ministry, you know? And I want a revival. That's right. What a great thing to request for your birthday. Yeah, just like totally a move of God. Well, we definitely want BJ to join us now. She is a Christian recording artist and music evangelist who's been singing gospel music since she's been five years old. And through her ministry, she shares her story of sexual abuse and assault in hopes of helping other women who've walked through the same trauma. BJ, we are so glad to have you with us. Thank you. It's so good to be back with you guys today. I'm excited to see what God's gonna do in the program. Oh yeah, God is always moving. And BJ, can you just start off telling about your story and your testimony because you walked through some really hard and difficult times as a young child. Well, unfortunately, my story is not anything new. I mean, it has happened to many over the years. And, you know, I started off as a child, you know, in a large family. And as you know, every family has its problems and its issues. And one of the things that has happened in our family was there was some molestation going on. And, you know, as I went through that, that was a devastating portion of my life. But when I became a teenager, I also experienced date rape, which was also just as devastating. And because I was on that road, you know, I was thinking, you know, that this was just how life was gonna be, that I was always going to experience such devastating moments in my life. And, you know, the Lord opened up a way for me to get out of some of those situations. And even though he opened up a way for me to move out of that, unfortunately, I never could quite get away from it, you know? I always thought like, you know, I'm never gonna be good enough for anybody. I'm never gonna be good enough for the ministry, even though I knew I was called to the ministry. And because of that, I made a lot of bad decisions based on my past. And a lot of women do that. I minister to women on a regular basis. And a lot of women are making a lot of life decisions based on that pain and on that past. And because of that, I stepped into a marriage that I knew when I went into it that I wasn't supposed to be going into that. And because I chose to anyway, I was in a 15 year abuse of marriage. So, you know, the enemy tried to take me out early on. He tried to destroy me as a child. And then as a teenager, and then as an adult. But you know what? God's grace has always been greater. God's mercy has always been greater. And so I praise God that even in the midst of those situations, God's light shined brighter than anything. And because of that, I am who I am today. And so my mission in my life is to let the young ladies know that their past doesn't have to define who they are. It doesn't have to define their future. And if we can catch them when they're younger and get that truth in them, then they don't have to walk the road that I walked of going through all of the hurt and the pain and the devastation, the suicidal thoughts, the eating disorders that I faced. All those things were based off of what I had gone through. But if I can reach them early enough and say, look, Jesus is greater than your pain. He's greater than your past. You don't have to go through all of these things. And I know a lot of women go through things even greater than that. They get into drug addiction and alcoholism. Statistics say I should have had a bunch of kids out of wedlock and been in mental institutions, but for the grace of God. So I am thankful that the Lord, even though that past is ugly and everyone has a past, God's grace was so much greater and so much better than that. You know, Vijay, I just think, thank you so much for your transparency because I just wanna say you don't look like what you've walked through and gone through. And I know there's a lot of women, even men that are watching that can attest and say, I am too, one of those that walk through that I've been molested, I've been raped or been in domestic violence situation. Vijay, what would you say to that person that right now still feels just like a victim is still dealing with shame? How do we go from this victim place of just feeling burdened and overwhelmed into a place of overcoming where we can walk in that victory and hope in Christ? Well, the first step that, you know, of course salvation is first and foremost, relationship with Christ is the most important thing. But after that, you know, the Lord showed me when I was going back and forth into the depression and the suicidal thoughts, even married with three kids still having that struggle. I remember sitting down on my couch one day and just saying, God, I can't do this anymore. I feel like a fraud. I'm singing the gospel. I'm ministering to people on a regular basis. I'm singing across the world on television and I'm dying inside and I want to die. And the Lord really just put it on the line for me. He said, your freedom comes when you forgive. And, you know, that shook me up because I felt like I shouldn't have to forgive. I wasn't the one that did anything wrong. At least I felt that way. Even though I felt that way, I had done things wrong as well. And God brought that to my remembrance. He said, you know what? I forgave you of many things and you have to start there with that forgiveness. When you let them go and you trust me to take care of them, then I will heal you. And I purposed in my heart that day that I was gonna forgive. And I know a lot of people say, well, I've tried forgiving. You know, I've done that before, it doesn't work. But forgiveness isn't something that you try. Forgiveness is a lifestyle. It is a choice that we make. It's not based on our feelings because our feelings lie to us all the time. All the time. And so we can't base our forgiveness on our feelings. We have to know that this is a choice that I made between me and my savior. And I told my savior that I choose to follow his word and to forgive. And regardless of how they're doing and how they're acting, I'm gonna stay steady. And with the help of the Holy Spirit coming alongside, walking me step by step. Sometimes I went backwards, sometimes I went forward, but God walked me through that. And I found that after I got through that, I could look back and I was amazed at how the dreams were healed. The relationships were restored. God actually gave me a compassion and a love for some of those who had been abusive to me. And God can do that for you. And that's where your freedom lies. That is the key for your freedom. And it's something most people don't wanna have to hear. They don't wanna have to deal with. But the forgiveness is the most important step to your road to healing. And when you take that step, God takes it the rest of the way. BJ, you just said something so powerful. And I just feel the Holy Spirit does not want us to move from a point where you said that forgiveness is a lifestyle, that forgiveness is a choice and it is key to our healing. So can you just take a moment and just pray and speak to that person right now that is watching, has been listening to you share and listening to your testimony and saying, that is me, can you just take a moment to speak to that person that is wrestling with that unforgiveness because of all the pain and all the things that they have walked through so that they can begin their pathway to healing. You know, God can help you walk through this just as he did me. I am nobody special. And I had anger that I had chips on my shoulder that were as big as day. And God can remove those same things from you today. And I'm gonna pray. And that's God to give you the strength and the desire to want to walk that road because it has to be born here. We have to know that, okay, I'm ready. I'm ready to make this step. And I'm going to follow through no matter what the enemy brings my way. Father God, I pray this morning. There are so many women all over the world that has faced some type of assault in their life. Father God, the statistic numbers are so high in this world. But Lord, you know each and every individual and what they've gone through. And Lord, you can give them the ability to walk this journey of forgiveness, this lifestyle, this everyday walk with you forgiving as they go. And Lord, I ask that the Holy Spirit will come even where they are at this very moment and just surround them and comfort them and show them, yes, you can do this. Yes, you are able to get past this pain and have a life that is full and full of the love and the grace and mercy of God and be able to pour out to others rather than having to always be poured into. And Lord, I thank you. I thank you today that you are going to have testimony after testimony of how your grace and how your mercy came into their life and completely changed them just through that one obedience of forgiveness. Lord, we thank you for it in Jesus' name. Amen and amen. Amen. Well, thank you so much, BJ, for praying. And we have just a minute left in our time with you today, but we want you to talk about your new music project called Hope Horizon. Can you share a little bit about the inspiration and what it is? We had just gone through COVID and I was in the process of making an album before COVID and so Hope is Rising just was birthed out of one of the lines and one of the songs. And it was just what we, I felt like we needed hope and this album is full of just songs full of hope. Billy Gaines, who is a double award winner, sang a couple of songs with me from the Billy and Sarah Gaines duo. And so it was an honor and a blessing to have him on this album. I was so excited. We did it there in Nashville and it was just, every song was written specifically for this album and it's exciting. I'm loving what God's doing in it. And so you don't want to miss out on getting to hear this project. Well, BJ, thank you so much for your gift of music and also the gift of your testimony because we know it is freeing and setting so many people free from their trauma. So thank you so much for the gift that you are to the body of Christ. Well, we're so glad that we had our conversation with BJ and coming up right after our break, we're gonna have a moment where you're gonna hear about the devastation and the trauma that is happening in Turkey and Syria and how World Vision is making an impact to bring hope right into those places. We'll be right back. Cornerstone Television exists to spread the good news through Bible-based programs and a fully staffed prayer line. Through CTVN, lies are saved. Hearts, minds and bodies are healed and Jesus is lifted high. We can't do this work without you. Would you consider sending a gift this month to keep the gospel moving forward with power? When you give, we'll send you listen, love, repeat which presents scriptural examples of those who lived alert, including Jesus who noticed those who least expected to be seen. Gives creative ideas for showing love to friends and family, suggests practical ways to reach out to the lonely, marginalized outcast, helps you comfort the grieving and so much more. Ask for your copy of listen, love, repeat when you give today. Call 888-665-4483 or go to ctvn.org slash donate. Thank you for your generosity. Hope happens here. Three months ago, a catastrophic earthquake in a series of aftershocks struck two countries in the Middle East already reeling from a complex layer of tragedy and suffering. You may have heard about it on the news. The initial quake shook Southeast Turkey near the Syrian border early Monday morning on February 6th. When something like this happens, the initial focus is on rescue and recovery. Relief in humanitarian agencies like World Vision say an estimated 56,000 people have died. More than 125,000 have been injured and equally as disturbing is the number of people who have been forced out of their homes. And today, Cornerstone is taking a deeper dive to find out what is happening now and what, if anything, we can do to help. Joining us now live from Amman Jordan is Yohan Mohi and he is the director of World Vision Syrian Response. Yohan, can you just paint a picture to our audience what the situation is right now? There's also the presidential election in Turkey that is coming up on May 14th. So how is all of this impacting the people that have been devastated there? Well, yesterday we had another earthquake in Turkey and parts of Syria. And people are really terrified of what happens, of what still happens. People are not at ease to return to their homes. They lost family, friends. Many have moved away from the cities to the countryside or the northern part of the country. So you could say the search and rescue operations they've all finished. And in the meantime, we're replacing tents by living containers just to make sure that people have a bit of a home. Wow, I just hearing all of this, I think it's just, it's so sobering for us here in America. And can you talk to us? I mean, there's like deep levels and layers of trauma that are happening there. In the northern part of Syria, there has been a war ongoing for many, many years. I think we're entering our 13th year and people have gone through a war, displacement, COVID, cholera, and it's one disaster after the next. And the earthquake was one of many. And you could say people are a bit more resilient in Syria, but that would kind of underestimate the trauma they have seen over the last 10 years. I mean, there are many children who have never seen anything else but war and conflict. But if you go into northern Syria, all you see is tents as far as the eye reaches and many people. So how are families coping and what is the sense that they're dealing with? I have lived in the Middle East for the last seven or eight years. And what I've seen in various countries is that family is very important in the Middle East. So people look after themselves if they have a family. I can tell you also about the hundreds of children, hundreds of children who have lost their parents or have no way of finding out where their parents are. And they're being looked after to some extent to the neighbor by the neighbors and family members. But it is a devastating situation. And after the first couple of weeks, the world attention kind of faded away and moved to other areas, which I understand. But those who went through the earthquake will remain with the results for many, many years. And we will look at the basic needs like water and food and heating and shelter. But I keep stressing in my own organization, we need to provide a lot of people with psychosocial support and provide shelter and care for children who have no way to understand fully what is happening. Well, it's truly beautiful and just seeing how God is using world vision to create that safe space in such a hopeless situation and this generation that's just been growing up in trauma with war and just devastation that you all are having the opportunities to be the hand of feet of Jesus to give them that safe space and a bit of their childhood back. And, Johan, can you just tell us ways that what can we do to help? We're trying to reach 500,000 people and still it doesn't feel enough. And I would value people's prayer or wisdom to kind of choose the right place and choose the right people to reach and make choices that are quite difficult. And also for our staff who themselves, they went through the earthquake also. They were in the houses when it happened in the early morning of the sixth and they chose or they had no option but to move on and start helping people. My prayer, maybe our prayer could be to kind of to support them. It's kind of that God will be near and that they can continue the wonderful work they're doing. Thank you so much, Johan, for just giving us an update, sharing with us, our viewers to help understand just the level of trauma and devastation and why it is so important that we here, I know at Cornerstone Intelligent Network, just having the opportunity, just for you to speak and share with us that Syria and Turkey will not be forgotten. And if you're interested in supporting and prayerfully consider supporting with World Vision, go to worldvision.org. We'll also have a link on our website at ctvn.org. Johan, thank you so much for joining us today. Thank you. Well, thank you to World Vision and for that picture of what's happening in the real world at this time. And you know, it's sort of, I feel almost paralyzed, almost like, what can I do to help? What, should I go there? You know, I know we, you know, as a church we just sent money to Turkey for an organization that's helping, but here's what we can do. We can all do something. We can pray. We can support those that are there, helping recover and restore. And we can also believe, like in that time of Esther, when she was Queen of Persia, which is modern day Iraq, Iran, Syria, Turkey, it's the same region, the same part of the world that men and women of God are gonna rise up for such a time as this, and that we're gonna believe that God is going to move, that Jesus is revealing himself to people, that the church is being established and built, that people are gonna be helped and rescued, because Tom, it is actually God, it's like God is gonna show up there. He's gonna use people to show up there. Well, you know, I think we've heard both, with both stories today, of tremendous trauma and devastation that people go through. Jesus said in the world, you have tribulation, but he said, take courage, I have overcome the world. Now we apply that personally and we should, but we can also be the hands and feet and the heart and the love of Jesus to people who have gone through trauma, whether it's the trauma like BJ went through, or whether it's trauma like happening in Turkey. We need to be that love, that care, that concern, those prayers, those tangible things, all those things that people need. You have the opportunity to do that, not just through us, and through organizations like World Vision, but through the people you know. God's calling you to touch someone today who's experiencing those kind of levels of tribulation in the world. You know, just one thing that I just, image is just staying in my mind, and maybe with many of you, we're just watching what's going on and what's happening in Turkey and Syria, it's just that road, and there was just rubble on either side. That was just a very sobering, I think, just to think, just, I don't think we can really fathom here of what it would look like if our neighborhoods look like that, if our cities look like that. I think here in America it's just very hard for us to really fathom and digest just the amount of level and trauma and devastation. But then I also think that that picture plays as a portrait of what a lot of us feel in our personal lives. That maybe that you are in a situation that you can relate to BJ's testimony of you've been raped, you've been abused, you are in a domestically violent situation. And the one thing that just comes to mind is I just think of the scripture, that's an Isaiah that he gives us beauty for ashes. So maybe today your life looks like that or we see what's happening in our world that there's so many ashes around us. But we know that we have a promise from God that no matter how dark it gets, no matter how hard things are shaken in our world, that we know that we have a savior that loves us, we know that we have a God that is for us and he is close and he is near to the broken hearted. We know that he is in the business of employing and using us to rebuild the broken cities. And so today we just ask you whether side you're asking yourself what can I do to help with the situation in Turkey or Syria or if your life looks like that rubble what you see in the earthquake and the devastation, know that God's hand is in both and that when you seek his face, when you get before him, he will give you the wisdom, he will give you the revelation and he will give you the understanding that you need and healing takes time. None of this is a quick fix. Whether you've walked through trauma or whether you see it's happening in the world, we have to understand we can't popcorn and microwave these things just to come about but we do know that we have a God that is for us, that a God that loves us, that he is our deliverer. And today just give us a call at our prayer line at 888-665-4483. We are always here for you. No matter the situation, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, cornerstone, hope today, we're always here for you no matter what you're going through. I also think too, forgiveness has been a key word in this program today. And I was thinking about when BJ was talking, all of the moms that feel traumatized by things they're going through with their kids, maybe their kids have lied to them, abused them, misused them, hurt them, wayward, struggle, pain, hateful words, crazy situations and you know what today mom, we gotta let it go, we gotta forgive because we've been forgiven of much, we too can forgive. So today is a great day. Man, if you really want a lot of rubble in your life, just don't forgive. Just hang on to everything, get bitter, get hard. Let's let it go and let's walk in freedom that only forgiveness can bring. Notice that BJ, in BJ's story, it wasn't until she forgave that she found freedom herself. There's a spiritual dynamic going on in all of our lives that God is working in, but we need to allow him that opportunity. So have you made him your Lord and Savior today? Have you invited him in? Have you become one who says, yes, I'm gonna follow you Lord, I don't understand everything. I have questions, I have problems. Me and you gotta have a conversation. God knows all that, he knows your hurt, he knows your pain and he desires to just reach inside and begin to do his work. So open that door today. Maybe you are a Christian and it's been a long time since you've really felt the power of God, the anointing of the Holy Spirit or God doing something in your life in a special way. He's, I'm here to tell you, he's wants to do that today. Open that door, re-dig those wells, clear that out so God can come in and begin to move in a special way. He loves you today, he cares for you today and he has healing for you today.