At the age of 8, world reknown gospel singer and pastor Donnie McClurkin was hurled into whirldwind of confusion by a violation of rape by his uncle. Something that no 8-year-old should never have to witness, let alone go through. But then he was molested again at the age of 13 by his uncle's son.
Yet, despite feelings of hate towards those who hurt him, hatred towards God for letting it happen and hatred at wthe world, Donnie turned towards God.
"I found that you can know the Scriptures and fail in your struggle because you never used them. But when you use them in the midst of your temptation, they give you the strength to overcome."
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And even now, in his family's newest trial, Donnie again leans on his faith.
Dealing with a death of a loved one is nearly impossible. Something about the deceased passing before they reached adulthood makes the feeling all the more overwhelming. Tragically, the niece of Donnie McClurkin made her transition to heaven on Friday, October 31, reports The Christian Post. Trinity was 13 years old. Although McClurkin was a part of The Festival of Praise concert just days after Trinity’s passing - during which McClurkin emotionally broke down a few times – McClurkin was still able to praise the Lord.
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In the midst of the death of his niece, McClurkin was able to show us the power of faith. Even a pastor and gospel singer like McClurkin has his faith tested. Here is how McClurkin’s faith may have even been strengthened amidst a tragedy.
McClurkin has not released any details surrounding the teenager’s death, but it was apparent to the audience that he was hurt. Tears were running down McClurkin’s face for much of his performance, but at least he was not alone. Onstage with him were fellow gospel singers Kim Burrell, Jessica Reedy, Fred Hammond, Isaac Carree, Zacardi Cortez and Hezekiah Walker. He took to Facebook to explain his emotional performance to his fans.
"The passing of my 13yr old niece, Trinity, 4days ago and the pain it's left her parents and grandparents, aunts uncles, brothers & sister and cousins left me broken on stage, but theses singers were and are so much more than singers. Kim Burrell, Jessica Reedy, FRED Hammond, Isaac CARREE, zacardicortez, HEZEKIAH WALKER... Their love helped me minister... it's all for the glory of God! Keep my family in prayer... Home going service is this Thursday... another death... but God be praised. Their love helped me minister ... it's all for the glory of God! Keep my family in prayer ... Home going service is this Thursday ... another death ... but God be praised ...Through it all, Andrae ... through it all!"
Believe it or not, the passing of McClurkin’s niece was not the first death in the family of that year. Back in March, one of McClurkin’s siblings, Cheryl "Cheri" McClurkin, passed away from a heart attack (he also previously lost a different sister and both parents to cancer). Naturally, he took to social media to comment on the loss. Along with a picture of his late sister, he captioned it, "My sister ...ENJOY HEAVEN, Cheri.”
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Notice a trend with how Donnie McClurkin deals with tragedy? Without the optimism that lives within him, he would have become insane. Who wouldn’t? He has been losing loved ones all at once. Optimism is a huge part of faith (another large component being courage).
Essentially, with his strong relationship with God and God’s word, he knows that everything will be alright. Why? Because not only does everything happen for a reason – even if it takes you forever to understand why – but one day he will be reunited with the people he lost early on.
We can all learn from this mindset and here is why. Things happen in life that we have no control over – the death of a loved one is one of those circumstances. Some serious grieving time is needed in order to release those emotions of anger, sadness and confusion. But the truth is, you still have to carry on in life; other people need you! While you can never truly “get over” a death that hits close to home, faith allows you to cope with it. With faith you know that everything will be alright. And it will be!
As we all know, life is not only filled with pain and sorrow. McClurkin also had a notable victory to celebrate this year. McClurkin's radio program, "The Donnie McClurkin Show" on WBLS FM, pulled in the highest ratings the station had ever seen during its 5 a.m. to 6 a.m. time slot.
McClurkin previously told The Christian Post that God's grace allowed him to accomplish what he set out to do for the Kingdom. So, add another important component to faith: knowing the grace of God.
"The definition of grace is the supernatural ability to do what you cannot do in the natural and God graces us to do what He's called us to do," he said. "He put just enough hours in a day, just enough days in a week and just enough weeks in a month for us to accomplish things."
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