Don’t Give Up on God

Are you broken or wounded? Has someone hurt you so deeply that you don’t know how to move forward? Maybe you even feel like giving up on God because you feel like He’s already given up on you.

Oh, precious soul, if I could take you in my arms and hug you today, I would. I would whisper that it’s going to be okay, that you’re going to get through this. I may not understand what you’re going through, what tragedies or suffering you dealt with in the past, but God does.

But maybe God is part of your pain. Maybe you believe that God is somehow a reflection of the cruelty of others, especially if you’ve been hurt by someone in the Church.

Unfortunately, there are times when His children, being human, fail to reflect His love and compassion. There are even those who claim to be Christians while lashing out at others. (When “Christians” Throw Stones.)

Please don’t take this out on God and walk away from Him.

I believe God is calling to you during this time of isolation and wants to heal your broken heart.

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” (Psalm 147:3 ESV.)

I believe in the depths of my spirit that this is the time He’s reaching out to you, through this post, through quiet times at home or in your backyard, through a word from someone you know.

He wants to take you in His arms and hold you. He jealously longs for you. He knows how people have failed you, how their words have cut into your heart, hardening it like scar tissue.

Please don’t turn away from Him.

I don’t know the “why” to your questions. I don’t know why you suffered or struggled, why you felt abandoned or hopeless. I don’t know why others hurt you the way they did.

But I can tell you I’ve been hurt too. And in the darkest moments of my life, when others struck me with the cruelest of words, turning their backs on me and abandoning me in my pain, God never left me.

He may have been quiet, but He was still there.

“For God has said, ‘I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.'” (Hebrews 13:5b NLT.)

I believe He was silent during those times because I was either shouting within my spirit and couldn’t hear Him over my pain, or He was quietly joining me in my suffering. (You know, those times when someone you love is suffering and the pain is so unbearable you can’t speak a word but instead you sit beside them hoping to bring them comfort. I believe God does that too.)

When you hurt, God hurts with you.

And I believe no matter how dark the storm, no matter how the waters rage, God will reach right through it all to grab onto you, to save you, to steady you until the storm passes.

Perhaps He will lift you from the storm, lifting you high above those things that are hurting you.

But maybe He won’t, instead choosing to pull you closer to Him as He endures the storm alongside of you, shielding you and singing to you so you’ll focus on Him instead of the howling winds.

You may consider giving up on God. Please don’t. Don’t give up on Him. He promises He will never give up on you. Never.

Come back to Him. Cry out to Him. Call upon Him. Whisper His name.

Jesus.

And He’s right there with you. Strong, solid, and forever. Loving you completely and helping you to move forward.

“God himself is right alongside to keep you steady and on track until things are all wrapped up by Jesus. God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure, shares with us the life of his Son and our Master, Jesus. He will never give up on you. Never forget that.” (1 Corinthians 1:8-9 MSG, emphasis my own.)

“One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up.” (Luke 18:1 NLT, emphasis my own.)

“Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture. None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing – nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable – absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us. (Romans 8: 35, 37-39 MSG.)

 

(Photo from pexels.com.)

Now Is the Time

We’ve all been hurt by someone. Perhaps it was a parent or a close friend when you were just a child. Maybe it didn’t happen until you were much older, blindsiding you and leaving you crushed and wondering how you’ll ever come back.

Maybe you were even hurt by someone in the Church.

It can happen. The Church is not a building where people gather but a family of believers, a group of imperfect people trying to follow the perfect Jesus Christ.

Unfortunately, most families do hurt each other at one time or another.

But what devastates a soul is when the pain becomes a loud rushing sound, drowning out the voice of God, and that soul walks away from Him.

I imagine Almighty God lowering His head and sobbing, longing to hold His child who has turned away from Him and is suffering alone. (If this is you, please turn back to God. Please let Him hold you and help you to heal and move forward.)

Now is the time, dear Church, to prepare to bring back those who have been wounded by our imperfections; each and every lost and wounded soul. Now is the time to open our hearts to God so He can fill us with His love to overflowing, so when the doors of the building open wide and the injured, the broken, and the lost come in, we are ready to pour out His love upon them.

We must be ready to love like never before.

And we must prepare to find those who have wandered off, to take His love to them and not wait for them to come to us. Let us remember this time of being the Church outside of a building and not grow comfortable when we return to meeting inside of a building again. Let us be so moved in our desire to please God, the One we met with when we were withdrawn and in our homes, that we can’t sit still, that we must go whenever He calls and wherever He leads.

Heavenly Father, help us to be ready to obey You when You call. We invite You, Holy Spirit, to have your way and lead the Church inside and out of the buildings where we meet, beyond the social media sites. Expand our territory. Jesus Christ, You are the head of Your Church, and we yield and surrender ourselves to You. Use each one of us as the members of Your body, Lord. Please forgive us for the time we’ve wasted and redeem that time, Lord. Our hearts need You. Our spirits long for You. Our desire is for more of You and less of ourselves. Lead us, Holy Spirit, guide us and teach us how to love others more deeply than ever before. Teach us to worship in spirit and in truth. Teach us to speak Your Word with great boldness. Show us how to reach those who are hurting in the world. Help us to bring the wounded back into Your fold. And teach us to love You more deeply with all that we have and all that we are without worrying what others might think, aiming only to please You.  It’s in Your name, the powerful name of Jesus Christ, we pray these things. Amen.

May the Lord prepare His Church for the mighty movement of His Spirit. May He stir us from our sleep, stir something deep within our spirits now so when we are drawn together in the physical realm again, the whole world will hear His voice and know our God reigns.

And those who have wandered off, those who are lost, and those who have been wounded will be overwhelmed by the very love of God who never, ever gives up on His children.

“Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.” (Acts 20:28 ESV.)

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39 NIV.)

 

(Photo from pexels.com.)

 

The Suitcase – Letting Go

Hauling around past failures, regrets, and hurts in a ridiculously large suitcase (of course it’s large, there’s a lot of that stuff, right?) is exhausting. And just when you think you’ve got a good grip on it and can handle it, or maybe you’ve figured out how to hide it so you can forget about it, you find yourself tripping over the contents that have spilled out in an ugly display at your feet.

You hear laughter.

What in the world is going on? What are these painful things, these ugly memories doing all over the place? You loaded them up a long time ago and stashed the suitcase. Somewhere. In your closet or maybe in the basement where you store all the musty things from your past you hope to forget.

But there they are: the very details of your past glaring at you. They’re not forgotten at all but were merely hidden. And as you bend to pick them up and shove them inside, ONE MORE TIME, you realize this is like the millionth time you’ve done this and the simple act of touching these things again and hurrying to get them out of sight is absolutely draining.

Tears are landing in fat plops on that big failure of yours; the one where you think you let everyone down. And you feel sick to your stomach when you shove the memory of someone who unknowingly crushed your spirit back into the suitcase. What is it? A photograph? A note; the careless words used lightly, still weighing heavily on your heart? You’re not sure what it is, you can’t even see it because everything is a blur, but you can feel it in your hands. The pain is still very real. You give it a good crumple and thrust it back in the suitcase.

Your face is soaked and your heart is aching all over again as you shove all the garbage back where it belongs into the suitcase you plan to hide again. Only now, you can’t even close it.

Somehow, there’s more pain.

You fall to the floor in a heap and sob. You don’t know how to handle it anymore. There’s no one who sees all that you try to carry or all that you’re trying to hide. And now, it’s too full to close and too heavy to move.

Again, you hear some sort of sickening laughter.

Your head hurts and things are so blurry. The truth is even blurring. What was that you just thought a moment ago? No one sees you and all you’re trying to carry or hide?

That, my friend, is a lie. And you know who the father of lies is, don’t you? The enemy is the one who finds joy in your pain and laughs when you’re down. (Don’t be surprised if you notice a bunch of rocks hidden among the contents of your suitcase…each one is a lie meant to weigh you down even more.)

If the enemy can keep you slumped over and discouraged over your past, he’s going to do it. If he can stop you from letting go and moving on, well, he’s going to do that too.

The truth is GOD SEES YOU. He knows all about your suitcase and every article down to the most minute stitch of material, every crinkle on the papers and photographs, and every word on every note you’ve tried to ball up and forget. (Yes, He sees those rocks too. He crushes those lies into a fine powder and brushes them aside, right down the gutter.)

You know, God is the One who gave you the suitcase. Not so you’d carry everything around or stop and open it to relive the moments that have hurt you, remembering past conversations that cut you, or those so-called failures of yours.

Actually, those “failures” have drawn you closer to God so can you really call them that?

God will help you hang on to those important things. Those things that shine with truth. Those things that have made you stronger and have helped you become the person God wants you to be.

God didn’t give you the suitcase so you’d stash it somewhere, but so you could pack up all of that stuff and hand it over to Him. He’s the One who can carry it all. He’s the One who wants to. For you.

That’s how much He loves you. And that’s how much He wants to free you so you can move on to live the abundant life He has for you.

Hand it over, my friend. All of it. And let go.

“When he [the devil] lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44c NIV.)

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10 NIV.)

 “But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13b-14 NIV.)

When a Warning Slaps You

I slapped myself in the face yesterday.  And pretty hard too.  I had been rushing around, gathering shopping lists, coupons, and a few snacks and drinks for the long day ahead of me when I felt a little tickle on my face.  At first I thought it was just my hair brushing across my cheek until I remembered my hair is really short now, AND this tickle was moving and crawling up my face.  I went into panic mode, slapped myself in the face, and jumped from the car; thankfully I was still sitting in the garage!  I ripped off my jacket and shook it out, brushed madly at the rest of my body, and began to search for the creepy spider with long legs I just knew was on my face.  But I never found it.

What I did find, however, was a memory buried in the back of my brain that reminded me of another time when I was frantic, trying to get to the store with our daughter (who was only about two at the time) to pick out a Father’s Day gift for my husband before I had to leave for work. I made sure she was buckled in, got myself situated, and backed right into the garage door.  I forgot to put it up.  I remember looking back at our little girl, so thankful the door was the only thing that got hurt.

Sometimes God will do things, outrageous things, to slow me down just to protect me. Traffic jams, the car won’t start right away, or someone else is running late that I’m waiting on.  The phone rings right before I head out, or I can’t find my keys.  Or God allows me to back into the garage door or slap myself in the face to wake me up right then and there to reveal the panic mode I’m in and to snap me out of it.

So I have to wonder, what did God save me from yesterday? I may never know.

Hmm. Maybe He didn’t do it to protect me but to protect you.  Maybe that’s why He wanted me to share this with you, to help you slow down.  Maybe this post is your “slap.”

Please don’t rush past His warning.

“Hear, O my people, and I will warn you.” (Psalm 81:8a NIV.)