OUCH! Wow, that hurts!  I did NOT see that one coming!  Right in the face, I mean anywhere but there!   I can't believe I let that happen to me.  What was I thinking?

Sometimes life deals us a sucker-punch that leaves us with the most dreaded thing we want most to avoid...hurt.  We don't want to hurt because after all, it hurts!  It's painful.  It's the pain that comes from an unexpected blow that hurts the most - because we weren't prepared.  We didn't prepare ourselves and we didn't expect it and then there it is - a jab in our heart.  We might have been just laughing it up and then bam!  Now we are sad, grimacing, gripping our heart, bent over and tearing up crying over the blow.  Nothing feels worse than hurt.

You should know by now that I am referring not to a physical hurt but a hurt in the heart and mind, which is just as painful and sometimes more so.  A physical hurt has a healing process that often the body itself performs systematically.  However, a mental and emotional hurt isn't healed on it's own, contrary to the old saying, time does not heal all wounds.  Rather, we ourselves have to take control of the healing process for every hurt we encounter in our hearts.

Some hurts occupy our thoughts and burden our hearts with a heaviness.  These hurts are regretful and sorrowful and they require comfort and peace to stave off infections of worry and fear.  When you are dealing with this pain you might have a hard time sleeping, functioning throughout your day and you find yourself feeling a heavy burden in your soul.  And if this hurt lingers you will have to promote healing by doing as Philippians 4: 6 suggests;  "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving make all your requests known unto God, and the peace of God, which surpassess all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

Recently, I found myself experiencing the pain of hurt through a circumstance.  I was surprised that I had allowed myself to become vulnerable to this particular situation and even more surprised to find myself thinking on it constantly to the point of distraction and that it was becoming a painful burden.  The fact that there seemed to be no resolution or restoration made it more intense.  It hurt and it was hurting continuously for longer than I had expected and I was having trouble "getting over it".  Finally, with my heart getting heavier and heavier with the burden of this hurt - I had to say to myself..."there must be relief for me, maybe I should pray it through to release."   Yes, even pastors can have spiritually dull moments and have to wake up!  

 It wasn't an instant relief and I had to apply this medicine of releasing prayer for days, but eventually the hurt lifted and the burden of it's pain left me.  The beauty of praying over hurt is the second part of that scripture.  God takes the pain and covers your hurt areas with a peace that can't be put into words!

Another hurt is more damaging.  It is the hurt that is caused by offense.  It is possible to be hurt and not offended just as it is possible to be angry and not sin.  Hurt is the result of the injury - it is a natural response.   Offense is a secondary symptomatic reaction, like a rash, and it quickly develops infections like anger, revenge, hate, hardness and defensiveness and is sustained by a bad infection called un-forgiveness.  You can not naturally heal from an offense. It has to be treated and every last cell of it must be eradicated from your being or it will manifest in another area in the future.

A wonderful treatment for offense is to pray for the instigator of your hurt and  bless your enemies and to pray for those who persecute you and treated you badly.   Another is to understand that offense must be starved.   Moving on from Philippians 4: 7 to the next verse, it says this;  "Finally, whatever things are true, whatever things are notable, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praise worthy - think on these things....and the God of peace will be with you."

Just like the hurt that was constantly on my mind to the point of distraction, I finally had to "move on" and fill my mind with things that promoted my healing and starved the breeding ground for offense.  I was considering being defensive, making sure "they will never hurt me again" but I can't go there and I can't be that - and neither can you. 

 God has too much for His people for them to be carrying hurts.  He created us to feel, but He also created us to HEAL!   The only people who have died of hurts are those who refused treatment!  And God's health care is free!  Already bought and paid for by the stripes on His back,the chastisement of our peace upon Him, as well as every sorrow of ours He bore on the cross.  

 

TRANSFORMATION

"But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord." 2 Corinthians 3:18

For the past week I have been thinking a lot about "transformation", a true work of Grace!  I am thankful for so many things that pertain to being a Christian and the work of Christ that we as believers partake, but one of the most exciting is "transformation." 

 As a Pastor I have had the privilege to watch this process happen in people's lives who come to Christ with baggage that had left them depleted emotionally, wounded physically and mentally, bound by many addictions, phobias, restraints, oppressed, suppressed and depressed.  These issues affected their relationships, their daily routines of living, their ability to be productive and their personal happiness.  So many people live this way and never find relief and actually accept it as the way their life "is".

But the HOPE of Christ is that He came not to bring condemnation to this state of living but liberty, freedom and abundant life that has fullness of joy!  And that is what "transformation" is about;  going from a previous state of "life-choking" issues to be "reborn" into a life of joy that comes from the freedom within!

"Transformation" happens when there is a change in the nature, condition and function of your mind, soul and spirit and the Word of God tells us in the 3rd chapter of 2 Corinthians that the Spirit of the Lord brings liberty or freedom from the things that bind you up.  In other words, "transformation" is a work of the Spirit, its something that happens when the Spirit of God is active in your life.

"How do I get the Holy Spirit active in my life?"  I am so glad you asked!   Well, Romans 8 is a great place to start in understanding the power of getting into unity with the Spirit of God so He can actively do something in you.  The first step is to get your thoughts in line with the thoughts of the Spirit - which is making a conscious effort to re-program your thoughts.  Yes, you can control what you think on!  You can reject your old ways of thinking and concentrate on a new pattern.  Is it hard, yes, does it take effort, yes, does it take a while, yes. Yes, Yes and again, YES!  But this is a first step and its the BIGGEST step toward transformation!

It leads to Romans 8:11, "If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also GIVE LIFE to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you."   Think of it this way;  if you are bound with issues, they are killing and brining death to your life and happiness and you need a power that can resurrection the "original" YOU that has the potential to be, to enjoy, to live and to flourish!   The Spirit of God is the only thing that has that resurrection power and He can give life to what is dying!  That is transformation!

I speak from experience.  When I look back at pictures of myself in my early twenties, I see a young woman who was bound by terrible insecurities, fears, issues that had a hold of my mind and soul and was snuffing out my joy, my potential, my ability to connect with people and God.

I was paralyzed.  I could not truly enjoy ANYTHING because everything was tainted with my fears and insecurities and everything was poisoned with toxic thoughts of negativity.  I don't even like to look at pictures of that portion of my life because I think how wasted those years were.   BUT THANK GOD for the power of the Spirit of God in my life that gave life back to me!

I can mark the time when I stopped making excuses and let go of self-pity and allowed the Holy Spirit have access to the deep places me, I got "real" with myself and took control of my wrong thinking process and applied Biblical principals to my thoughts, I aligned my actions to what the Spirit of God was leading, I pursued and followed hard after God's purposes for me, and as this journey unfolded the Spirit of God was resurrecting the real me!  I came alive.  That old bitter, suppressed, insecure, sad, depressed, melancholy woman evaporated like the stench of death and I was free!

And there are many, many others that have experienced the same.  Here are a couple of testimonies that tell about transformation that is happening now in women who are learning to partner with the Holy Spirit for their freedom!

"You know my story concerning fear, but not totally everything! Since I can remember I have Always had to fall asleep with the TV on, so that my mind did not wonder . Since seeking God, being in Daughter of Destiny mentor group, and in the process of reading "Destined to Reign"; last night was the first night in forever that I can remember going to bed, and going to sleep in the darkness (no TV) without fear!! God is really Doing something in me, and I am SO EXCITED!!! :)"

"I was so defeated, shut down and broken when I first came to your church almost 2 years ago after my divorce and massive weight gain from the anti-depressants I was placed on. I have learned many principles this past year which I can successfully apply to my life and learn to successfully overcome. I can say that your teachings greatly attributed to my growth and healing and not just "reclaiming" my mindset, but learning how to rise even higher."

These women named coming to church, being under teaching, reading certain materials, but those were just tools that pointed out Biblical principals that allow the Holy Spirit to operated fully in their lives and in turn they are changed new women, embracing fully who they were created to be and all that God has freely given them through Christ, so much so, their physical appearance is changing too!   

I believe in transformation!  I believe God can do it in anyone!  I believe you are never too far gone, too old or too hard a case!  The first step has to be made by YOU!

CONTRIBUTED ARTICLE: "NOT YOUR MOMMA'S CHURCH!"

Lately I have been blessed by the contributed articles by Women of Destiny that I usually put in the side column. Recently my husband made a statement to describe NDIC which inspired this article by Veronica James.

As far back as I can remember my mom took me to church. Church was good. I loved singing in the choir and the pastor knew me by name. He knew me so well; I can remember him making a comment on how my singing voice was getting stronger. We had a connection that was so strong until when he moved to a different church, I had a dream about him… and I was away in college! I absolutely loved my momma's church.

When I went away to college, I found a church just like my momma's church. The church had a few hundred members, I sang in the choir and the pastor knew me by name. This church was just like my momma's church except it had three ordinances instead of just the two ordinances of water baptism and Holy Communion. The third ordinance was washing feet as Jesus washed the Disciples feet after the Last Supper. It took me a few years to take part in this ordinance; but when I did, I received such an awesome lesson in humility. I loved this church! I was growing spiritually and it was still very similar to my momma's church. I absolutely loved this church.

My career moved me from the area and away from my beloved church. When I moved to the new area, I searched the yellow pages for a church that washed feet. I prayed that I would like the church because of the blessing I received in washing feet. Honestly, the preaching wasn't so good, but the singing was good and I continued to grow because I studied the Word to get what I was missing.

God has a way of using you when you least expect Him. It was the pastor's appreciation and the committee asked me to sing a solo. I prepared a song, practiced it and was ready the night of the event. When it was time for me to sing, I literally forgot the song! I didn't forget a few words in the song, I forgot the entire song! Instead of the song I had practiced, I sang, “Give Me a Clean Heart”. Less than a week later, the pastor's wife told the church that the pastor was on drugs. He refused to get treatment and he left the church.

We eventually got a new pastor and things were good for a few years. But things began to change. I was doing all that I was supposed to do. I studied the Word and I did my very best to live the songs I sang about. With all of this, I wanted more of God. I needed more of God. In my mind, it was time out for me going to church to get an emotional high. I needed a Word that would help me get through the week; not entertainment. This was like my momma's church, but I was out growing my momma's church. One Sunday during service, the Lord said to me, “Leave this place and NEVER come back again!” So I did.

I left that church that was so much like my momma's church without a clue as to where I would fellowship next. God's Word says that He will never leave us nor forsake us. He sent to me a woman pastor who spoke into my life. She sent a message to me stating the importance of my “covering”. She wasn't, so much, trying to get me to join her church but her concern was my “covering”. I didn't really understand at the time what she meant but I attended her church and found what I was looking for. She preached Jesus and how to live in today's world. She helped me understand that worship is so much more than a feeling. Worship is a committed way of life to live for Jesus… and that's only part of it! The church was awesome! The service was awesome! The Word was awesome! Everything was awesome and almost NOTHING like my momma's church.

My tenure at the church was only about four years. Approximately a year after she went home to be with the Lord, the church had transformed into my momma's church! I had to leave! I had to leave because I had grown to realize that my momma's church was not good for my spiritual health.

I am now in a church body that is awesome! I love it for so many reasons. One major reason is that I can praise and worship God with absolutely no inhabitations! Another reason is that, at this church, I do more than just sing. God has chosen me to help lead His people into His presence through the singing. This church is awesome! The services are awesome! The Word is a NOW Word every service. I know that it's from God because, most of the time, God has already given me a piece of it. The called man of God simply gives it to me in a manner I can apply it to my everyday life. I say again, this church is awesome… and it is absolutely NOTHING like my momma's church!!

It is our responsibility as Believers to have a “right” relationship with God, not just any relationship, but a “right” relationship. The Bible has the answer as to how to develop and maintain this relationship. Not only has God provided the Manual, but he has also provided church bodies in the earth realm to help in the process. Again, it is our responsibility as Believers to allow the Father to order our steps to a proper covering. If our momma's church is not that proper covering, then our momma's church can no longer remain OUR church!