Hello Everyone. As Christ’s followers, how can our hearts contain words, that when spoken, hurt others? How can our hearts contain unspoken words that hurt us?
Unresolved events that occurred 10 minutes ago, 10 years ago or 10 minutes after we were born take up space in our heart, our mind, our soul and our strength. Unsettled, these events can act as triggers when similar events occur.
We may have been abandoned or abused verbally, physically, sexually. Any number of unspeakable events may have occurred in our lives. Left to fester, even if we never speak to another person about them, they are there, just below the surface.
Our hearts hurt. We may feel alone. We may wonder how we will recover from such things as the death of a loved one; an impending separation or divorce; our addiction to alcohol, cigarettes or drugs; our weight that seems to be spiralling upward; the abuse that continues to occur. Our ability to cope with life may seem to lessen every day.
When something happens that disturbs that spot inside us that is already swollen with strong emotions, we can be catapulted into conflict before we take our next breath.
If the difficulty is with another person, let’s think of this: we are dealing with someone who is composed of heart, mind, soul and strength, just like us, someone who may be experiencing inner pain just like us.
God is asking us to give Him our painful memories; our need to be angry, to seek revenge, to hate; to come to Him for comfort; to seek His wisdom, His mercy, His grace; and His forgiveness. He is asking us to be His hands touching the world with the kind of love that resides in His heart – sacrificial love enfolded in kind words and actions rather than destructive reactions.
The importance of loving and implementing God’s word in our lives cannot be overemphasized. We are called to love one another, to uphold one another, to encourage one another. We are to gently, patiently, faithfully remind each other of God’s great love. Let’s do this together. Amen.