Embraced With Open Arms

Judith S.

When I left the shores of Jamaica in 2013 with my son Daniel to come to the United States, I didn’t come seeking a better material life but I was in pursuit of something more eternal, something that I could not actually put my hands on but something I wanted to apprehend: a family. For many women in Jamaica that is something hard to achieve especially if you were perceived as successful by the world’s standards. But the Lord is faithful as His word reminds us that He places the lonely in families. At that time, I didn’t understand that in order for me to truly come into the new life that He was going to give me that He was not going to use the same materials of professional success or material possessions to build it. This was what my identity and sense of self-worth was wrapped up in. As the Master Builder of my life, He began the painful process of demolishing the faulty foundations of an impressive image. In its place, He used the eternal materials of the Cross, the Blood and the resurrected life of Jesus. Ladies and Gentlemen, this sounds lofty and wonderful but my reality has been challenging and I am putting that mildly.

In His divine wisdom and providence, He provided me with a sister in the faith in the person of Sherry Braswell. Sherry was on a similar journey but further along that road. It was Sherry that He brought to my side to walk with me through that and to be perfectly honest, she continues to walk with me as I continue on this journey which has been full of struggles. Proverbs 17:7 reminds us that a friend loves at all times and a brother is born for adversity. The Lord provided Sherry for me in this deep yet exciting and fulfilling journey.

I met Sherry in 2013 at GRACE Christian School. This seemed to be an impromptu meeting that spanned 4 hours (Stacy was present) after Mom’s coffee at Hope. A few weeks after that Sherry invited me into her home. She was the first person to invite me into her home and into her life and she welcomed me with open arms. Somehow it seemed as if she always knew me and understood me in a way that I still can’t articulate. I guess the word that best captures it is that she loved me from the beginning and Sherry loves everyone she meets. She connected with me and brought me into her world and her world changed mine. Her love changed my world.

Sherry has loved me at all times and when I mean all, I mean ALL!! That, ladies and gentlemen is a rare treasure and you don’t see that every day. It takes maturity and selflessness to do that. Let me just say that I am not easy to love all the time but Sherry has remained a faithful friend and sister, relentless in her love. It would be remiss of me not to also say that Sherry is a very genuine person and so authenticity flows thought the ministry touching every woman that has been privileged to be a part of it. Sherry’s connections are not self-serving. She doesn’t have selfish motives in her connections with people. Her only motive is to see people set free from a false identity so that they can live in the fullness and the freedom that Christ died to give them. In this world, even amongst us as believers, THAT is a rare treasure. It’s just the love that God put in her for people. Sherry Braswell, Christ’s love in you is being poured out so that the world would know that Jesus is the Healer and the Redeemer and that we don’t have to strive to gain love but that because of what Jesus did on the cross We can now rest in Him. According to Isaiah 61, you are an Oak of Righteousness, the planting of the Lord. You provide a shade and resting place in your life and in your home. Your husband and your daughters call you blessed. They allow us into your life and into their home so that we can find fellowship with the Lord and with each other and it is in this place of fellowship with Him and with each other that we have found our own identity and freedom.

Sherry’s life and this ministry is called to a world that is in desperate need of experiencing the love of God. I can say without reservation that Sherry has played a critical part in my spiritual growth and my sense of belonging. I can also say that I believe that my presence in this ministry is a sign of the global reach that the Lord has in store for Sherry Braswell Ministries. The Ministry is a gossip-free, highly confidential, non-competitive environment. The women that I have met through this ministry have also embraced me with open arms and we have all gained incredible insight through the exchange of cultures and it has brought into sharp focus the call that we have to dwell together in unity and this can only be exquisitely expressed in the presence of a variety of cultures.

The central mission of Sherry Braswell Ministries is to take people out of bondage into victory by finding one’s true identity in Jesus Christ. In Philippians 3, the Apostle Paul writes about his list of impressive credentials which gave him influence. Like Paul, I have come to realize that the greatest life that I could ever enjoy would be for me to lay down the life that was made out of striving to impress others so that He could give me life in the resurrected power that Jesus died to give me. I am delighted to be a part of tonight’s proceedings. Please join with me in celebrating the official launch of a ministry that is called to raise people up to live in the resurrected life of Jesus.

Judith S.