Because God Was There. Belma Diana Vardy

Was There is a must-read for every person who has ever experienced trauma or hurts in life.

      GERARD (ABOUYOU) ROBERTS, DVM (KARINA)

      AND PETA-GAY (TAYALITI) ROBERTS (TAINO/ARAWAK)

      International speakers, Worship Keepers

      First Nations dancers

      I could not put down Belma’s book, except to choke back tears so as not to become a puddle in public. Her journey has touched me profoundly, as it will anyone who has experienced even a little of her trauma. Thank you, Belma, for showing us the way into forgiveness, hope—even celebration.

      BECKY THOMAS

      Foursquare pastor, Saskatoon, SK

      Native American Music Award recipient

      2011 Best Female Artist

      As a young child, Belma Vardy lived through the brutal and terrifying events that accompanied the sudden erection of the Berlin Wall, when east was separated from west and families were ripped apart. Providentially, she was there almost 30 years later to witness and celebrate its destruction. Her gripping personal narrative, as told in Because God Was There, is also a journey out of extraordinary abuse and painful separation to a place of restoration, forgiveness, and joy that can only be found in Christ.

      Embodied in this transformational story is the encouraging truth that God can use our fractured and broken stories to bring healing and hope to others. It is also a powerful testimony to the role that dance can play when expressed to the glory of the Original Artist.

      DR. COLIN HARBINSON

      International director of StoneWorks Global Arts Initiative

      Author, international conference speaker

      Creator and choreographer of Toymaker and Son

      Because God Was There. A Journey of Loss, Healing and Overcoming

      Copyright ©2017 Crystal Waters Music | [email protected]

      All rights reserved

      Printed in Canada

      ISBN 978-1-927355-85-5 soft cover

      ISBN 978-1-927355-86-2 EPUB

      Published by: Castle Quay Books

      Tel: [phone]

      E-mail: [email protected] | www.castlequaybooks.com

      Edited by Marina Hofman Willard

      Portrait photo by Daniel Holmes Photography

      All rights reserved. This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form without prior written permission of the publishers.

      Some names in this manuscript have been changed to protect people’s privacy.

      Scripture taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV) copyright ©2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved.• Holy Bible, King James Version (KJV) which is in the public domain. • Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. • Holy Bible, New Living Translation (NLT) copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. • Revised English Bible (REB) copyright © Cambridge University Press and Oxford University Press 1989. All rights reserved.

      Foreword by Lorne Shepherd

      Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

      Vardy, Belma, author

       Because God was there : a journey of loss, healing and

      overcoming / Belma Vardy.

      ISBN 978-1-927355-85-5 (softcover)

       1. Vardy, Belma. 2. Christian biography--Germany.

      3. Christian biography--Canada. 4. Dance--Religious aspects--

      Christianity. 5. Berlin Wall, Berlin, Germany, 1961-1989.

      6. Germany--Biography. I. Title.

      BR1725.V37A3 2017 270.092 C2017-901056-5

      Acknowledgements

      Thank you, John and Marion Franklin of Imago! This book has been an Imago project (www.imago-arts.org) made possible through the generous support of donors. Thank you, precious donors!

      Many thanks to Daniel Holmes Photography for the portrait photo.

      A very special thank you to Ric and Shirley Riordon for guiding the image that reflects my story.

      Thank you to the readers who gave of their time and resources: my dear friend Carolyn King (former elected Chief of the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation), Becky Thomas, Moira Brown, Lorne and Doris Shepherd, Sam Cooper, Jaime Fernandes and Mary Audrey Raycroft. Thank you, Cheryl Bear, for your support and friendship.

      I also thank Diane Roblin-Lee, Daina Doucet, Faith Baczko and Becky Thomas, who poured their hearts, love and souls into this project.

      To two motivated editors—an artisan and refiner, Daina Doucet (Summer Breeze), and gracious and God-inspired Faith Baczko: a very special thank you for your deep commitment and dedication to excellence and loyalty; for all the love and care you poured into this project; and for submitting your talent, experience and passion for a common goal—to expose God’s glory! Thank you, dear editors! I praise God for such an amazing team of women!

      A big heartfelt thank you to Larry Willard, managing editor Marina Willard and Castle Quay Books. I am grateful for your wisdom, support and oversight of this labour of love in every step of the project.

      To God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

      Jesus my eternal Bridegroom

      All blessing and glory and honour and power forever

      I offer this with praise and thanksgiving

      For You alone are Worthy.

      Contents

       Foreword

       Preface

       Introduction to Pause and Reflect and Discussion and Study Guide

       Chapter 1: Terror in the Night

       Chapter 2: Beginnings

       Chapter 3: Rooted in Love

       Chapter 4: In the Clutches of a Monster

       Chapter 5: Escape from Hell

       Chapter 6: From Runaway to Runway

       Chapter 7: Breaking Down the Walls

       Chapter 8: Surprising God Encounters

       Chapter