"Praise the Lord. I'm blessed" are often things you hear repetitiously in church when asking someone how they are doing. I understand the need to be positive. I understand that we are not to live by our feelings. I understand we need to confess what the Word says about us. BUT I also know there are people right in our churches who are broken. They fear saying how they really feel because "that wouldn't be faith talk."
It is time for the church to become a safe haven; a place where people can reveal in order to heal. Do we camp out on the problem? No. But once we know there is a problem, we can offer the solution. I encourage everyone to be more sensitive to the inner cries of those around you. You have in you what people need to be free. However, you can't help them if you don't know help is needed. We need to make ourselves available so that His healing power can flow through us.
And remember: Healing is a process. Helping someone who is emotionally broken requires time and a whole lot of patience. A lot of people do not want invest that kind of commitment in the lives of others. This then leaves us with churches full of people putting on their “church face” and never being real with one another. Is this what “church” is supposed to be all about?
“The Spirit of the Lord [is] upon Me, because He has anointed Me [the Anointed One, the Messiah] to preach the good news (the Gospel) to the poor; He has sent Me to announce release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to send forth as delivered those who are oppressed [who are downtrodden, bruised, crushed, and broken down by calamity” Luke 4:18
All that’s hidden
Must be revealed
Must be revealed
Nothing gets past Your eyes
You know the darkness underneath
You know the inner cries
You want to peel the mask away
And erase all of the fakeness
You are not pleased with the lies
You’ve come to expose the weakness
You desire that all of Your children
Would have oneness with each other
But these walls are such a hindrance
Of us being real to one another
You know everything about us
The reasons we are insecure
Only You have the answer
To release us from this fear
It can’t be done in our own strength
The supply comes from only You
Deliver us from this bondage, Lord
Make us a people who walk in truth
Dear Elizabeth,
ReplyDeleteI'm Zillah Herrera from the Philippines. I bumped into your blogspot while researching on "...throwing the first stone". And I found myself reading your other entries. They cut to the heart. In fact I linked some of your entries to my facebook page. I hope you don't mind (since there's a link option below). I want my friends to read your entries.My husband and I are involved in a recovery ministry and the stuff that you shared simply put words to our thoughts. I'm also currently enrolled in a Christian Counseling Program and just recently we discussed topics that relate to what you have written in your entry Reveal to Heal. I love the poems. Thank you for sharing your heart. (I've typed in my URL but blogspot doesn't seem to recognize it so here it is, http://lacasadeherrera.wordpress.com/
Blessings on you Zillah! Thank you so much for writing, for your kind words, and for linking my posts to your facebook! What a blessed connection :) I will check out your website when I get a few extra minutes. Have a wonderful, Jesus filled week! :)
ReplyDeleteOooppps, I'm not sure if I sent my most recent comments. Anyway, I just got started with my wordpress blogspot. So I'm still putting things together. I thought you might be interested to know some comments in my facebook page about your blogspot entries and several likes. Some also share links with me. Here's my facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/zillahbh
ReplyDeleteBlessings to you.