Thursday, December 22, 2011

"..but they HURT me"



"Don't use church scandals to justify why you are not a Christian or don't go to church.They didn't die on the cross for your sins, Jesus did."


We've all been hurt before--some of us have been hurt in church and BY the church. Then, we turn on God & reject people because of our pain. Remember that church is a hospital with broken people that desperately need Jesus. If you can recall why you turned to Christ--most likely its because you hit rock bottom in your life. So imagine taking all of those broken people and then ask them to "walk in love", figure it out & have healthy relationships. Many people lead a life of competitiveness, jealousy, envy & lies, then they make Jesus Lord of their life and sometimes, they have to go through a PROCESS to be free from those areas. Then, you get caught in their web of their "process"--and HOLD that hurt against them to this day. Remember that our spirits are renewed, but some of us still need to renew our mind concerning people (some? well, most of us). Mind renewal is a DAILY task. So YES, you will get hurt. Grab every brick that's thrown at you & build a beautiful house whose foundation is on a ROCK--which is Christ.

So..forgive whoever hurt you. Don't blame God for the ones that hurt you. Forgiveness frees you from that situation. Allow God to make you whole.Unforgiveness robs us of the full life God intends for us. Unforgiveness festers  and grows into bitterness. Hebrews 12:14-15 warns, “Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root rises up to cause trouble and defile many.” Similarly, 2 Corinthians 2:5-11 warns that unforgiveness can be an opening for Satan to derail us. So who or what is satan using to derail you? Shut him down. Forgive.Love.Receive His Healing.Move.On. :)


God loves you like crazy,

Heather

6 comments:

  1. this is sooooo true !!!
    too many people turn their back on God because of someone in the Church
    or a church that hurt and decide to say no to God all together ! instead of seeking God for themself..

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  2. I can definitely speak to this as I've experienced and walked through this personally. I left church for six years because the church turned their back on me when I got pregnant at 18. I have never felt so rejected in my life. But I thank God for my foundation because when I was ready to make positive changes in my life, I knew God and the church was my starting point. And because I followed my heart and God's direction, He led me to my husband :) God is good all the time and all the time, God is good. Bless you Heather, keep up your great work in Christ!

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  3. Yes, it is so important that we remember our own imperfections before we allow the imperfections of others to break us down. We have all said the wrong thing, been less than the best friend we could be, or misused our authority in some way...we must extend the same grace Christ extended to us to others :-).

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  4. Thank you for this post Heather, I am dealing with that right now at the church I go to. I have been going there for three years and God has been changing me from the introverted/shy person that I thought I was into this bubbly loving person who just wants to shower real genuine love on others. Unfortunately, that has not been received well and often times I feel rejected when I try to be friendly and form relationships with others in the church, I feel like there is an impenetrable circle and it hurts. In an effort to not live on feelings, I have decided to stay and learn the lesson that God wants for me to learn which is forgiveness, acceptance and contentment despite how others act toward me. Only challenge is that I no longer go to their social gatherings so I don't endure that pain of rejection, working on it. But thanks a ton for this perspective!

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  5. You are speaking the straight up gosepl truth! There is nothing like Church hurt and I have experienced it first hand. But God used that hurt to draw me closer to Him and as I look back I am grateful for what I went through because I would not be the woman that I am today if it has not been for that hurt I experienced. Out of our greatest pain comes our greatest testimony!

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  6. Hello Heather, thank you for this message. I was just speaking to my cousin about forgiveness and I believe I've forgiven the people who've hurt me (and I pray to be forgiven for those I have hurt). I don't generally like to hold on to stuff because I don't like the negative feelings associated with that. BUT the pain is still there. I can still feel the hurt from years ago to something someone may have done even yesterday and it's VERY tender. How can I replace the hurt with joy? I know that this is something I ultimately need to take to Jesus :), but I would like to know your thoughts.

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