Is God able to bring healing to a broken heart?
Psalm 147:3 He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.
How many of you have felt the pain of rejection?
You have tried your best and been told that you are not going to amount to anything.
Maybe you have experienced deep rooted hurts from your dad, your mom, or from a close friend.
Maybe in the past you have confided in someone and have been betrayed and let down.
Here are some lies that we often believe when we have been hurt:
-I am worthless.
-I will never amount to anything.
-I am the only one in this situation.
-No one will understand what I am going through.
-I can’t do anything about it.
-I’ve gone too far.
-No one cares.
When we are hurting, we often go to the wrong places to fine acceptance.
We often treat the symptoms instead of the root problem.
Many spend their whole life discouraged, bitter, and broken.
Does Jesus really care about what I am facing?
Luke 4:14 ¶ And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through all the region round about.
15 And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all.
16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
How can Jesus bring healing to my situation?
How can I find freedom from the pain?
Does he really understand what I am facing?
Can I really trust Him?
If He is a loving God, then why do I hurt so deeply?
Our past often shapes our view of God and often our view of God becomes distorted and absolutely is wrong.
God is so much greater than the hurts, the pain, and the situations that we find ourselves in.
How do you and I find healing?
We tend to rebel and become angry because we don’t really know if anyone really cares.
We go as far as to reject God’s Love because we don’t know how to deal with our past.
The only way to find true healing is to forgive the one that hurt you!
The ironic thing is that true forgiveness is not concerned about “feeling healed”.
True forgiveness is about being reconciled with the one who offended.
Forgiveness isn’t about denying there was any hurt, but about cancelling the debt.
This is what forgiveness looks like:
“Even though you hurt me, you owe me nothing. I am not going to hold you accountable for my pain. I won’t excuse my actions as being a result of the pain you caused me. You are free. You never have to see how bad you hurt me and I release the drive to make you hurt as bad as you made me hurt. Even if you don’t apologize I will pursue relationship with you. The debt is cancelled and you are free.”
Forgiveness means that we voluntarily accept the consequences of past broken relationships but do not let that stand in the way of future relationships.
When we accept the pain of our past, it is then that we cry with Jesus as He did on the cross, “Father, forgive them! They know not what they do.”
Jesus said in Matthew 6:14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
How many of you are guilty of hurting others?
It is easy to excuse our own failures and faults and to expect forgiveness but it is much harder to extend forgiveness.
Luke 6:37 ¶ Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:
Forgiveness is not the result of Jesus miraculously removing the pain from your life but it is something that you extend to others if you want to experience Jesus.
We like to place judgement:
-he should not have done that to me!
-that was so wrong of her!
Jesus is calling you and me to forgive!
Why?….because that is what he has done for us.
He does not keep reminding us that we deserved death more than He did.
Instead, He made a way for us to be able to forgive by forgiving our offences on the cross.
God, who was wronged by us, cancelled our debt and sent His son to pay the consequences…….DEATH.
If we desire forgiveness, we must extend that kind of forgiveness to others.
But cancelling the debt and paying the consequences of others is just part of experiencing forgiveness.
It’s the part where we extend grace and often it’s the only part we ever hear about, and we are left with a huge load of pain that we don’t know how to deal with.
This is where you will find those who are able to forgive but they often have something missing.
-The absence of Joy.
No one can take your pain away.
-You have to give it away.
You have to own the fact that you were hurt, regardless of whose “fault” it was.
If you ignore it or build walls in order to not get hurt again, you only forfeit healing.
The wall between you and the offender remains until you take personal responsibility to extend grace and forgiveness.
Then is when Jesus invites us to give all our pain to Him.
Isaiah 53:1 ¶ Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?
2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4 ¶ Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
10 ¶ Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
When the pain hurts the most:
-Give it to Jesus!
Allow Him into what you are feeling and let Him give you rest.
Allow Him to speak truth into your life.
Jesus said:
Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
When we turn to Jesus, he is always ready and willing to extend and fill us with His Love.
We need to live in the power of the Holy Spirit and allow God to have complete access and control over every area of our life.
What will I choose?
Can I choose to forgive?
Can I be vulnerable in relationships?
Can I respond in love even though I was just hurt?
Or am I still trapped in the negative thoughts, bitterness, and anger toward the offender?
If you are going to experience freedom and healing from your past you will need to forgive and love unconditionally.
I would encourage you to find someone that you can confide in because it will be very difficult to face this journey alone.
Here are a few pointers that you need to look for in choosing someone to help you to deal with your past.
1. They will allow you to share your pain and struggles without putting words in your mouth.
2. They will lead you to Jesus.
3. They will lead you in reconciliation with your offenders.
4. They will empower you to walk on your own instead of always depending on them.
John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.