Legal Minsitry Testimony
The past seven days have proven to be incredibly inspiring to me. I won a case and lost a case. What is so inspiring about losing? I’ll discuss this a bit later.
The case I won was my first ever custody case. You may remember that I have shared that I spent most of my nearly 13 years practicing law as a corporate government attorney. In fact, I had been in a courtroom in a professional capacity on two occasions: once when I argued an appellate case and when I was initially sworn in to practice law. Furthermore, my litigation experience was limited to two administrative hearings with a veteran attorney as second chair. To say I felt uncomfortable would be accurate. Yet, I felt equally compelled to help this mother who had been robbed of eight years with her two children.
Well, God made her enemies her foot stools in this case. The same people who had fought her at every turn offered her custody. To have this mother walk out of the courtroom victorious, hug me and begin to sob was the most humbling thing that had ever happened to me. It was at that moment that I truly realized the power of the Lord to make things happen through people. When I say that I was MERELY HIS INSTRUMENT I mean every word. ANY TIME I NEEDED ANYTHING God provided it. I handled this matter on pro bono basis. To see mother and child reunited was payment enough.
My other case is part of a bigger mission of mine: to educate the public about and advocate on behalf of those living with Sickle Cell Disease. This incurable, often painful and disabling disease is not understood by many who have the power to make AND interpret the law.
One of my clients is a 20-year-old unemployed male with a 10th grade education. He was not able to complete high school because of frequent absenteeism due to his illness. In fact, he had to undergo brain stem surgery. He is in such pain that he often has to take high-powered medicines like Oxycontin and Oxycodone. The real issue is that it is not just about this young man, but about EVERY PERSON living with Sickle Cell Disease. They are to whom I’ve been sent to serve in many ways.
I know this because at a Social Security Seminar yesterday, I just happened to sit at the table with an Administrative Law Judge who ruled in favor of her only claimant with Sickle Cell Disease. Then, on my left were two ladies who have nearly 60 years of experience between them working for Social Security. They told me that the group with whom to have a conversation are the people who make the initial determinations. WOW, another sign.
If I don’t know by now that my Legal Ministry is a blessing to me as much as to my clients, well then I probably ought to just drop out of school now, ‘cuz I haven’t learned a thing!