SOME PEOPLE ARE AN INSPIRATION. Not only have they overcome overwhelming challenges in their life, but their face radiates love and joy. Whenever you meet them, the warmth of their graciousness creates a sweet and welcoming encounter. This is Janet Perez Eckles, author of her new book, Now I See: How God’s Amazing Grace Transforms the Deepest Pain to Shining Joy What makes this book so amazing, the title so enticing, and her story so special is that Janet is blind.
I believe Janet’s story in Now I See and the following interview will inspire you to keep going when life plunges into chaos and God seems to have forgotten you. This woman is the real deal and her story an honest revelation of how God can step in and bring us from heartache to victory. Janet has been featured on the cover of Hispanic Woman Magazine, 700 Club, Desperate America (Good Morning America), Lifestyle Magazine and Focus on the Family I hope this interview encourages your heart and shows you a path to hope.
Linda: Janet, what did you do when God seemed to have forgotten you?
Janet: I was 30, ready to live my happily ever after. While I stayed home, caring for our three beautiful boys, hubby worked as a CPA and provided a comfortable life for us. . .
Until the day a retinal disease robbed my sight completely. In only 18 months, I went from an active mom, driving, shopping and preparing healthy meals for the family to a blind woman. Blindness was never in my plans. I ate self-pity for lunch and horrifying fear accompanied me to bed at night.
Linda: But I know that wasn’t the only devastation that happened to you. There was more around the corner. Tell us what happened that caused your heartache to be compounded by rejection and more pain?
Janet: Hubby who was also 30 didn’t expect his life to turn out this way. He married a healthy woman, vibrant, full of life and counted on a lifetime of happiness.
But now he was married to a blind woman, restricted in so many ways.
His answer was to find that happiness somewhere else—in the arms of another woman.
Linda: Where did you initially turn when the world crumbled into despair for you?
Janet: While I was living in physical and emotional darkness, my spiritual darkness was the most devastating. As a good Catholic girl, I repeated memorized prayers, obeyed rituals and doctrines. But none of them soothed my pain or erased my sorrow.
In desperation, I searched for answers in doctors, herbal healers, new age practices. My reasoning was if my blindness was cured, my husband would love me again, my boys would have a “normal” mom and my life would be like before.
Linda: So what changed for you?
Janet: God stepped in. And he revealed his answer. One verse at a time. A series of events led me to a Christian church where I found the Bible verse that shook me enough to realize my mistake, to recognize the wrong order of my priorities and my incorrect way of measuring my security. It was Matthew 6:33, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Linda: How did God create changes for you? 
Janet: I had to change first. I vowed to change my focus. With diligence and commitment, I chose to look to God, His Word and His promises. The more I listened to His Word, the clearer it became that although I had blindness, blindness didn’t have me.
In Matthew 6:33 God states He would add things unto us if we sought Him first. I embraced that truth and He began to add beautiful transformation, sweet changes and emotional healing.
In Ephesians 3:20 scripture tells us that God, by his mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we can think or imagine. Looking back now, do I think this is true? My answer is a resounding Yes! This was true in my physical darkness, in my marriage and my role as a mom. My husband saw the difference in me and after a series of events, He chose to come back. We became friends and God healed our marriage that lasted 42 years.
Linda: And now you’ve written a book that tells your story. How did this come about?
Janet: Why did I write my story? Statistics indicate that nearly every 11 minutes someone commits suicide. Life became too much. They’re overwhelmed by fear, anxiety, stress and despair.
But it doesn’t have to be that way. Christ Jesus promises the freedom from our anguish (Psalm 118:5). He turns our weaknesses into strength and contentment (2 Corinthians 12:10).
Some say I should be living a life of misery—blindness, the murder of my youngest son, the acquittal of the man responsible would speak of a life of tragedy. But my story is one of joy found within glorious victories.
Linda: Your story includes something else that many women are dealing with today. What message would you have for today’s woman who’s facing infidelity?
Janet: To hang on, hang on tight to God’s truth—your husband is not the source of your joy. He’s not the one who makes you whole. He’s not the one responsible for your security or happiness. When you realize that only Christ Jesus is the one to provide all for you, your confidence increases, your peace comes back and your wisdom dictates your reactions and responses.
Obeying God and embracing His promises will strengthen you enough to recognize God’s power at work on your husband.
Linda: Amen to that! That is a message I continually want to share with people as well. So with all the tragedy you’ve experienced in your life, what do you believe is the secret to living with joy?
Janet: Choosing gratitude, always. Every circumstance has something for which to be grateful. I thank God I can see with the eyes of my heart. I thank God that I will see my son again in heaven. I thank Him for showing me the way to forgive the man who killed him. And although my husband chose divorce after 42 years of marriage, I thank God for new beginnings, new chapters, and beautiful horizons!
Linda; Janet, you are such an inspiration. I know you well and the light shining in your face every time I see you is a testimony to the truth of everything you are sharing here. How do you think your new book, Now I See, will help people whose lives are in turmoil?
Janet: When the world is in turmoil, what happens to your peace amid that chaos? The headlines foretell gloom and doom and personal suffering threatens to break you, yet God’s promises speak of hope and glorious victory? How is this possible?
My book, Now I See will strengthen your resolve!
Tragedy cannot stop you. My transition from being a sighted mother to complete blindness at the pivotal age of 30 proves you can rise above pre-conceived limitations.
Grief cannot defeat you. My path to healing after the murder of my son proves that even loss is no match for God’s healing power.
Injustice cannot bring you down. When my son’s killer was acquitted, I discovered freedom still lives in forgiveness.
Relationships cannot stifle you. Despite the end of my decades-long marriage, God’s work in my life afterwards proves life still holds promises of joy with fresh, new horizons!
Now I See will stir the reader’s heart as they’re reminded that God is alive, that He sees their tears, hears their sobs, knows their fears, and is ready to calm their storms.
Linda: Where can readers find out more about you and your ministry?
Janet: People can learn more about me, my speaking, and my five books at www.janetperezeckles.com. Now I See is also available on Amazon.
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