We are all having to put “suffering with hope” into practice this week as we mourn the loss of our beloved former counselor and 2nd Shift Supervisor, Debbie Costa. Debbie served with us faithfully for over 4 years before having to resign in 2012 due to her battle with cancer. During her time here, Debbie greatly impacting the lives of countless young ladies in our program. This impact extended even further toward anyone who came in contact with her as she battled this illness. Throughout her\u00a0trials and suffering, Debbie and her family remained faithful to the Lord and never doubted His plan for their lives. Anyone who came in contact with Debbie could clearly see God’s light shining brightly from her smiling face.<\/p>\n
Listen in\u00a0as some of our current and\u00a0former staff, residents, and interns of VOH\u00a0share how Debbie greatly impacted their lives during her time with us:<\/p>\n
“As Debbie\u2019s co-worker I considered it a privilege to work in the office right across from Debbie.\u00a0Debbie and I had several conversations about the challenges we faced as Biblical counselors.\u00a0 She was such an encouragement to me as we both wrestled with balancing speaking truth, admonishing, and disciplining vs. restoring gently and showing grace.\u00a0 I so appreciated her wise words of wisdom.\u00a0One conversation that I will never forget happened while we were closing out some case files.\u00a0 As we were writing up notes we started sharing with each other how amazed we were at the Holy Spirit\u2019s direction in counseling.\u00a0 We were both sharing how God brought Scripture to mind during counseling that as we looked back on it were surprising to us because if we were counseling that situation right that
\nmoment, we might not have thought to go that direction.\u00a0 We were rejoicing together that God always provided just what the counselee needed even through sin cursed counselors.\u00a0 I would describe the way Debbie lived with the phrase: godly
\nperseverance.”<\/p>\n
“When I first arrived at VOH, Debbie was my first\u00a0counselor. Apparently the day before, a few girls had received a “not talking” consequence from Debbie\u00a0for some offense they had committed in the house.\u00a0In counseling and in interactions with her during my first month at VOH,\u00a0Debbie was serious and straight to the point.\u00a0In my immature,\u00a0addiction-twisted mind, I thought that Debbie was the “mean counselor.” What I once despised in those initial weeks as a resident is something I later came to respect. Debbie was never malicious; she took God’s holiness very seriously and was bold in speaking the truth found
\nin God’s Word. She didn’t show me love the way worldly women show love, which usually comes across as soft and sweet but is\u00a0actually rooted in cowardice. No, Debbie Costa\u00a0loved me wisely. After\u00a0my graduation\u00a0from VOH, Debbie’s attitude and wisdom whilst under the attack of an unrelenting cancer\u00a0spoke\u00a0to my heart intimately; even in the seasons where I watched from afar, her actions whispered promises of God’s loving-kind-faithfulness. When my own mother was diagnosed with Stage IV cancer last year, Debbie’s reflection on her own experience with cancer challenged me to seek a deeper theology of suffering. She has held me as I cried over my mother’s suffering, knowing exactly why I cried. The hard-edged woman that I had thought her to be years earlier was one of the only people who could look into my trial and say, “I understand.” Her unwavering trust in God through her own suffering of cancer still reminds me that when our hope is only\u00a0in the gospel, even
\ncancer can’t steal our joy.”<\/p>\n
“While I was a resident at Vision of Hope some circumstances revealed that I\u2019d never grieved the loss of my father and aunt to cancer. Debbie, dear, wise Debbie, discerned that I needed to commence the grieving process so she opened up the conference room for me (after hours, which was a real privilege and a big deal!). Compassion flooded and spilled out from her eyes when she encouraged me to cry before God for these losses \u201cfor as long as it takes.\u201d Because of Debbie\u2019s wisdom and sensitivity to facilitate the opportunity, I did. Debbie poured out a labor of love into my life as my counselor and friend. My view of God is bigger because of her. My love for Jesus is richer because of her. My life is free from life-dominating sin because of God\u2019s work through Debbie\u2019s counsel, prayer, wisdom, and love. Debbie\u2019s life rings out to me as an attractive song of truth and grace. She knew her God, and He was made known to the watching world through her joy, her counsel, her priorities.”<\/p>\n
Debbie will be so greatly missed, but through our mourning we have great joy knowing that she is resting sweetly in the arm of our heavenly Father in perfect paradise.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"