The Well
The Well |
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Connecting Hope to the Hurting | |
Wednesday
June 18, 2008
"You are sick from head to foot ¾ covered with
bruises, welts, and infected wounds ¾ without any
ointments or bandages."
Isaiah 1:6
This is the verse the Lord used to get my attention to just how deep the wounds of my soul were. Not only had the abuse affected my soul, but also my mind and body. My emotions were so raw that I could not make rational decisions about anything. My life was in shambles.
Yet, several years earlier, a friend asked me to read Isaiah 54:4-8, "'Fear not; you will no longer live in shame. The shame of your youth and the sorrows of widowhood will be remembered no more, for your Creator will be your husband. The Lord Almighty is his name! He is your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, the God of all the earth. For the Lord has called you back from your grief ¾ as though you were a young wife abandoned by her husband,' says the Lord, 'For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with great compassion I will take you back. In a moment of anger I turned my face away for a little while. But with everlasting love I will have compassion on you.' says the Lord, your Redeemer."
God is a gentleman. He will not force Himself on anyone. This is totally contrary to the actions of our abusers. Also, God cannot look on sin. So, during the time of our abuse, because maybe we did not know Him personally, He could not come to our assistance.
I don't know about you, but during the years of my abuse none of my family members were Christians. No one was praying for me. I had no blanket of protection to cover me. Does that mean that the children of Christians will never suffer abuse? I don't think so. Yet, I think that the wounds our children may suffer at the hands of an abuser will not go as deep as our wounds.
If we could do a survey of people in prison, I honestly believe we would find that at least 90% of them were sexually abused. When the soul is wounded utter confusion (Satan) rules. Until we submit to God, giving Him total permission to work in our lives, Satan's power over us will still come through those unclean wounds from our abuse.
God wants you to be healed, not only for your sake, but for the sake of His Kingdom and others who suffer. Please trust Him today to heal you – He is with you right now waiting to embrace you with His love.
Father, I confess that I have been very angry with you on the inside. Often, I tried to cover up my pain by being super religious, but the power of Your Holy Spirit prevailed and broke me where you could begin your work. I praise you for the pain and the problems that are molding me into all that You want me to be. I love you, and I am sorry for the years of running from you. Now, I choose to run to you. Thank you for holding me.
Your child
