Prophecy Changer
R.T. Ward
Redemptive Grace: A Follow-up Essay by Rose Ward
When readers meet Thea, the main character in Prophecy Changer, they will see a young woman searching for answers about her past. What they may not realize is that long before I put pen to paper and wrote this story, I was walking through a similar journey. In my twenties, memories of severe childhood trauma surfaced. It felt as though the pieces of my life that had been buried deeply suddenly demanded space, or to at least be acknowledged. I could no longer ignore them. Although I was blessed to have some miracles take place, healing was not instantaneous.
It wasn’t one prayer, one breakthrough, or one moment that suddenly made everything whole. It was a journey—one of learning to look honestly at what had happened to me, to grieve what had been lost, to process the pain, and by God’s grace—to forgive.
Forgiveness was one of the hardest parts.
For a long time, I believed forgiving meant I needed to forget or pretend the wounds didn’t exist. That is a false belief. Forgiveness doesn’t excuse the enemy or its lashes. It doesn’t erase the consequences. Forgiveness does, however, refuse to let the enemy have the final word. As I began to unearth forgiveness, God also began showing me some things that changed my earthly perspective to an eternal one.
Scripture says that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood.” This doesn’t remove responsibility from those who choose to do harm, but it does remind us that there is an enemy who delights in stealing, killing, and destroying.
When people make unholy decisions it causes a cascade of wounds, scars, and deep pain. I was steeped in the consequences of other people’s bad choices and behaviors and at times---all seemed hopeless. It was an eternal mindset that helped me realize how much the enemy had been at work and it was only the enemy and its unholiness that was hopeless, not I as a child of God.
What happened to me had nothing to do with my heavenly Father and everything to do with a fallen world. It had everything to do with those who allow an open door in their lives that Satan uses to bring devastation to others.
Knowing this didn’t make the wounds smaller, but it helped me release the anger. It helped me separate my identity that had been wrapped in a cocoon of wounds and scars. Hatred, anger, and bitterness would have all kept me bound to the very thing Jesus wanted me to be free from.
Forgiveness became the doorway to freedom.
That journey is one of the elements that found its way into Prophecy Changer.
Prophecy Changer isn't my autobiography, but the questions Thea, and the other characters wrestle with, are the ones I have wrestled with myself.
Who am I after pain?
Can my past define my future? Can it define me?
Can brokenness have purpose?
Will I believe the voices of fear, shame, and accusation---or will I believe God’s heart?
Those questions shaped nearly every chapter.
Readers may notice the dragon, the adventure, the mysteries, and the unfolding prophecy. They may cheer during the battles and wonder what comes next. But the scenes that mean the most to me are often the quiet ones---when Thea must decide whether she’ll agree with fear or trust the wisdom and truth of God.
I’ve come to believe that agreement is one of the most powerful tools we hold. The enemy will continually invite us to agree with his lies; that we are too broken, too damaged, too forgotten, and too far gone. Yet God invites us into something entirely different. He calls us beloved. Redeemed. Chosen. Made new.
The greatest battles are not always fought with weapons. Sometimes, they are fought in the hidden places of the heart. And courage? Courage looks like choosing to believe God one more time.
One of the beautiful things God has taught me is that He does not waste anything. He doesn’t delight in our suffering. He delights in redeeming it. God takes what the enemy meant for absolute destruction and transform it into something that points people toward hope and that is the story beneath Prophecy Changer.
More than anything, I hope readers don’t simply close the book thinking about Thea’s journey. I hope they begin to wonder if God might be writing a redemption story in their own lives as well. Because no matter what chapters you've lived, God never stops writing.
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