I Still Have Joy: Moving from Victim to Victory

By Angela Jacob Pierre

This book reflects a pilgrimage of the writer and her family through unforeseeable challenges. The discovery of God’s provisional plan for their lives comes to light through remarkable illustrations. It is a book of hope in the midst of devastating situations.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Oct 8, 2021
• ISBN: 9781664227026

Angela Jacob Pierre

Angela Jacob Pierre is a native New Orleanian, who received her undergraduate degree from Xavier University of Louisiana, and a Master’s Degree from Howard University in Washington, D.C. She is a certified Speech-Language Pathologist who works in administration for a local school district. She has had a passion for writing all of her life. She is married to Richard A. Pierre, and they are the parents of three sons, one daughter-in-law and one grandson. She has a passion for young adult ministry, and empowering others to go beyond the boundaries of their everyday thinking to achieve greater works.

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Copyright © 2021 Angela Jacob Pierre.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

WestBow Press

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Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Scripture quotations marked ESV taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-6642-2701-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-2703-3 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-2702-6 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021904767

WestBow Press rev. date: 08/28/2021

Contents

Dedication

Introduction

Chapter 1 Enduring Hurricane Katrina

Chapter 2 Running After A Storm

Chapter 3 Picking up the Pieces

Chapter 4 Bracing For Another Storm - Tornado, February 7, 2017

Chapter 5 Feeling Alone or Abandoned

Chapter 6 Falling Out of Depression

Chapter 7 Listening for the Voice

Chapter 8 Running Into Your Place

Chapter 9 Choosing to Live

Chapter 10 Identifying God’s Provisions

Chapter 11 From Victim to Victory – Discovering your Purpose

Chapter 12 Connecting With God - Angels in the Midst

Chapter 13 Chasing the Light: The Conclusion of the Whole Matter

Special Acknowledgments

References

Dedication

I dedicate this book:

In loving memory of my father, W.D. Jacob, who taught me to be strong, determined and proud in the midst of life’s challenges. Gone but in our hearts forever …

To my mother, the matriarch of our family, Rhetta Mae Robey Jacob, whose spirit of resiliency and perseverance have been awe inspiring to me for my entire life. Your faith journey is one to be emulated.

To my husband Richard – your story has become our story. I love you, and am so grateful that you have allowed God to give you a life of victory.

To my children – Aaron (Semonne’), Rashad and Austin – you may not know it, but you are true heroes. You have endured the storms of life, and have become great examples of God’s silent strength in the midst of the storms. I love you, and I want you to know that there is forever a purpose and plan for your lives.

To the youngest member of my family, Aaron Jacob Pierre, Jr. – May you follow the path set before you from your forefathers, so you too may live a life of victory.

And finally, to my angels in the midst. Thanks for standing with me, walking with me and crying with me. I know your existence is a part of God’s plan for my life.

I will love you forever.

Introduction

No, this is not happening!!! Who do You think I am? What do You see in me that I do not see in myself?! I can’t take this!! These were the words that bellowed from my tear drenched lips as I raced from one exit to the next, on Interstate 10 in New Orleans, Louisiana, trying to find a place to exit in order to get to my home that had been ripped apart by a tornado on February 7, 2017. There are no words to display the feelings of hopelessness and despair that I felt. I could not fathom a God who would, once again, allow such a tragedy to impale our lives. Had I done something so wrong in my life? Was I being punished? What was the lesson to be learned? There are no quick answers, but I felt so helpless. I know there had to be some rational explanation to the plight that I was calling life.

This road trip was one that I had not signed up for. I was living what I assumed to be a good life. I raised my sons in a God-fearing home; I had been a good wife, mother and daughter … so why were the circumstances of my life spiraling out of control? I began to question the God to whom I had given my heart and soul so many years prior. Had he abandoned me? Was I paying for the sins of my past? I wanted answers!! But that would be too simple. There was a pilgrimage that I would have to take. A pilgrimage that we are all created to take. This pilgrimage often takes the form of the Why me? question that is so often uttered from the lips of the sometimes faithful, hurting, confused, selfish, and unassuming.

We all have circumstances that we can be victimized by … … …

- the loss of a loved one (both physically and emotionally),

- children out of control,

- suffering from the effects of past choices,

- feelings of loneliness and depression,

- catastrophic devastation,

- lack of fulfillment at home, church and work,

- loss of job or income,

- terminal illnesses and disease,

- failed relationships……

The list can go on and on, and each person’s story is important to know. Life is full of challenges and trials, and emotionally our responses will determine the trajectory of our lives. It is helpful to see why and how people react to circumstances. We often exist in our own victimization without realizing that there has to be more to the story. Our victim stories are the catalyst for this book. The events of tragic, catastrophic weather systems and physical/emotional illnesses have indelibly left an imprint on my personal life’s journey.

Journeys are sometimes well planned and the paths may be clearly defined, while others are unplanned, bumpy and often lead to narrow scary roads. For either path, we will learn in this life that we do not have control. Have you ever thought about or had a nightmare about running and falling into what appeared to be a deep, narrow hole in the ground? You scream, but no one appears to be able to hear you. Your cries for help appear to fall on deaf ears, and there is no help in sight. When you try to pull yourself up, you cannot find a place for a sure footing. What do you do? You can see a small light flickering up above, but you do not know if you can reach it. I know that feeling, because I lived that feeling. This is the story of our journey from a feeling of helplessness to healing.

As I reflect on the seasons of my life, I am often overwhelmed by the process that I’ve had to go through. When I attempt to exhale I am now reminded that the next breath will be followed by an inhalation that may begin the rapid flow of events that may once again become breathtaking. So, how do you move forward? The answer to this question is the quest of this book. This book will hopefully be beneficial to someone’s journey, and also aid in the lifelong process of this victor’s story. Let’s take the journey together of moving from victim to victory. This is a process that every individual must embrace in order to move forward past unforeseeable circumstances, and find the light needed to live victoriously.

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Chapter 1

ENDURING HURRICANE KATRINA

C ome on a journey with me to an experience of my life that led to a path that seemed to end in a deep dark hole. It was August 22, 2005, and the news reports were coming over the television about a possible storm entering the Gulf of Mexico. My sons had just begun a new school year, and the excitement of