Seven years ago, the FamilyLife leaders of Taiwan (James and May Lee) met a woman named Elita who was seeking marriage advice. Her husband had abandoned her seven years previously for another woman and had sought a divorce from her several times. Elita never wavered in her commitment to him and instead prayed, waited, and trusted God to bring him back to her someday. Meanwhile, thanks in part to the Lees, she became active with the ministry by joining a women’s group and eventually became a group leader herself, ministering to other women with difficult marriages.
Last November, after 14 years, the man finally returned home, broken and repentant. Elita welcomed him with love and forgiveness in spite of the hurt and pain she’d gone through. “You owe me a hug,” Elita told him soon after his return. “I owe you my life,” he whispered in response.
“Love is a choice, a decision,” says Elita. “When I think about how God loves me unconditionally and eternally, that’s how I want to love.”