Juanita Bynum, a televangelist, has gone on “Divorce Court” to finalize her marriage to minister Thomas W. Weeks III, stating he has abused her and almost driven her to suicide. Never trust a man who includes his middle initial, we always say:

In episodes scheduled to air Thursday and Friday, Bynum also says she had thoughts of suicide and weighs in on a case involving domestic violence. When asked what advice she had for women in situations similar to hers, she said, “I have to make a decision … to take the love that I had for him with me.”

In a transcript of the show obtained by The Associated Press, Bynum said she would always love Weeks, but made a decision to “love me more.”

Weeks pleaded guilty in March to assaulting Bynum on Aug. 21 in a hotel parking lot outside of Atlanta; police said Bynum told investigators he choked her, pushed her down and kicked and stomped her.

Bynum’s decision to divorce her husband has also impacted her own ministry, which relies heavily on attempting to empower women:

Bynum, a prominent televangelist whose message of women’s empowerment resonated with many followers, said she saw signs of trouble in her marriage well before the assault.

“I was just trying to make it work because I don’t like losing relationships,” Bynum told Judge Lynn Toler, who hears cases on the syndicated show distributed by Twentieth Television. “All of this just kept getting swept under the rug … So you begin to adapt to a very wrong and very unhealthy marriage.”

The couple wed in a million-dollar, televised ceremony in 2002 and together wrote “Teach Me How to Love You: The Beginnings.” Bynum filed for divorce a month after the attack.

If an expensive, televised wedding can’t keep people together, what can? Good for Juanita, though. We hope people who find themselves in a similar situation might take a little hope from her decision.

On ‘Divorce Court,’ televangelist calls her marriage ‘done’ [AP]