Going through a personal and private experience such as an abusive marriage, one woman exposes her past pain and has also pivoted her pain towards a positive direction. The outcome of her distressful experience has resulted to the birth of an organization as a method to help educate and empower other women concerning the effects of abusive relationships.
This Journey Ministries, founded by Evangelist Cynthia Bennett of St. Louis, was purposed as source to help women to overcome abusive relationships.
“I am a survivor of domestic abuse,” she said. “My first marriage was an abusive relationship. I know by experience and can identify that women don’t have to live in abuse and know that God loves them.”
Moreover, Bennett uses the internet as a platform to reach volumes of women concerning the subject matter. She launched an online magazine as an avenue for women who have suffered abusive or domestic relationships to bond, share and experience their commonalities as a support mechanism.
“This Journey” (www.thisjourney.org) consists of contributing writers, poets and ghost writers, as these writers have chosen the option to remain anonymous.
“We are not going to be silent any longer,” Bennett said, as she encourages women to tell their stories.
According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, on an average nearly 20 people per minute are physical abused by an intimate partner in the United States. The coalition reports one in three women are victims of some form of physical violence by an intimate partner within their life time.
This Journey Ministries helps women to make informed choices in their relationships regarding the word of God and available resources.
“God spoke to me that I would have a ministry for hurting women,” Bennett said. “I heard the call and accepted it, but it came with a price. God said I would minister effectively out of my pain, and life experiences.”
Bennett said she experienced unusual and unexpected deaths involving many of her family members. Within a 10-year period, she said, her parents and her six siblings all passed away. During this time, Bennett was encouraged to continue to inspire others. She reached out to women via email and would send a one-page letter which contained words of encouragement and scriptures.
The newsletter was the foundation of her online magazine.
“I was faithful with the newsletter and never missed an issue regardless of what I was going through,” she said. “I knew someone else needed to hear what God had for them.”
Bennett said she has a sense of fulfillment when she helps women. She loves to build them up and knows it is her life’s calling to direct women to a closer relationship with God.
“My words come from the heart, and women listen,” she said. “This Journey Ministry’s title derives from knowing everyone has a journey. This journey, our life, will always take place in present tense. It will always be in the moment, in the now.”
Bennett provides other resources for assistance, including biblical counseling sessions, on-site shelter support, job search skills, emotional support, crisis Intervention, parenting skills, preaching engagements, presentations and workshops for women teens and children.
Bennett is a member of Faith Miracle Temple, 870 Pershall Rd. in St. Louis, where Apostle Larry J. Baylor is senior pastor. She served as the director of Women’s Ministry at the church for nine years. Bennett is happily married in her second marriage to Elder Michael A. Bennett Sr., a minister at Faith Miracle Temple, who assists his wife in the ministry. Together they have three children.
Bennett plans to organize 3K run on behalf of women and domestic violence on October 8; see www.raceforjadasa.org for registration and details.
To contact Evangelist Cynthia Bennett, email her at info@thisjourney.org or call 800-292-2146.
