Krizzia came from an OFW family. When she was young, their family migrated to Dubai. Her father had a good job and they had a luxurious lifestyle. But, all this ended when her father got ill and her parents had to return to the Philippines. Krizzia, with her three sisters were left in Dubai. Due to this, Krizzia was not able to go to college. After high school graduation, Krizzia was forced to work so she could help her family.
Krizzia loved the company of her friends. She enjoyed smoking and drinking with them. In spite of her schedule at work, she still managed to hang out with them. One night, Krizzia was invited to a party. She made sure that she didn’t drink more than two glasses of wine.
Krizzia arrived at the party after midnight. Her friends noticed that she disappeared soon after her arrival. The next thing Krizzia remembered was waking up in a room with a married friend. She became unconscious again and when she woke up the next morning, she was in the bathroom naked. She was weak and in pain. She couldn’t remember exactly what happened that night, just that something really bad happened.
She questioned the man she remembered was with her in the room that night, but his statements were inconsistent. She confirmed that something really bad happened when the guy asked her not to tell his wife and children in the Philippines. Because of so much shame and pain, Krizzia tried to commit suicide but she survived. She found the courage to tell her sister and they reported it to the police. Unfortunately, her medical tests did not confirm that she was drugged because three days passed before she reported the incident. The situation became harder for Krizzia. Her friends condemned her for reporting the incident to the authorities. She was accused of being a flirt and selfish by those she considered friends. But her family stood by her.
One night, while Krizzia was alone in her room, she prayed. She had been running from God for a long time. She had grown apart from her faith and rebelled. As she was praying, the Lord told her that she had to forgive the man who raped her. Krizzia didn’t want to do that and she started crying out to God. Finally, she forgave the man who raped her. Krizzia mentioned the name of her perpetrator and even the names of her friends who condemned her as she prayed.
After several days, Krizzia and her rapist met in court. Unlike her initial meeting with him when she had been so furious, now she looked in his eyes without any anger. “The moment na nagkatinginan kami, una, akala ko manginginig ako sa galit but all I felt was peace,” she said. Krizzia recalls that when she learned to forgive, “…parang may malaking bloke na nawala sa heart ko.”
Finally, the man went to prison and was deported.
However, after two months passed, an unexpected situation happened. Krizzia was accused in a “Boyfriend Case.” A boyfriend case is observed in Dubai because of Sharia Law. Her perpetrator’s friends falsely accused Krizzia of being a prostitute and her perpetrator’s girlfriend. Krizzia served a month in prison and was eventually deported.
During her one month stay in prison, Krizzia led muslim women of different nationalities to the Lord through prayers during their Bible Studies. Krizzia did not seek out these women but they would go to her and ask for her to pray for them. She realized that God wanted her to share the Gospel inside the prison before she returned to the Philippines. Krizzia said, “Mas naunawaan ko na ang grace ni Lord. I have learned to love my enemies.”
Krizzia became bolder in telling her testimony. She lets people know that God turned the terrible things that happened to her to good. She learned to be more forgiving, and learned that forgiveness produces freedom.
This experience became a turning point for Krizzia and her family. All of them became closer to the Lord. They became active in church ministry.
