Healing, Hope, Pain, Walking Weak & Wounded, Words of Endurance
Then Jesus said,
“Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you,
because I am humble and gentle at heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”
MATTHEW 11:29-30
Once we come face to face with our weaknesses and our sins then we need to take them before God. We need not be afraid to go to Him. If we need forgiveness and/or need to mature and grow in areas that we are incapable of doing ourselves then we need to ask God for forgiveness and allow Him deep within the darkness of our hearts. We must remember …
He who conceals his sins does not prosper,
but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
PROVERBS 28:13
Not only do we find mercy instead of condemnation but also we discover that taking our weaknesses and sins before God is our first step to purifying our hearts.
If we confess our sins,
he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins
and purify us from all unrighteousness.
1 JOHN 1:9
It was not easy for me to take those first steps. It was difficult enough to admit my sins and weaknesses to myself let alone to my Lord. I was so humbled but once I did He lifted me up and I found mercy.
“God opposes the proud
but shows favor to the humble.”
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
JAMES 4;6,10
I now know I can trust Him with who I truly am – warts and all. And when I stumble I can trust that that He will uphold me.
The LORD makes firm the steps
of the one who delights in him;
though he may stumble, he will not fall,
for the LORD upholds him with his hand.
PSALM 37:23-24
I can also trust that He will continue to work within me – bringing His light into the darkness of my heart – building maturity within me – till I am with Him in heaven.
Being confident of this,
that he who began a good work in you
will carry it on to completion
until the day of Christ Jesus.
PHILIPPIANS 1:6
The next step I needed to take was to share my sins and my weaknesses with other safe people that I trusted. I still remember how hard it was to look my wife in the eyes and tell her I was scared. I was scared of facing those first batters in the Major Leagues – I was even more scared to face cancer and death – Me, the big tough strong Christian man.
But what a relief it was to get those burdens out in the open and to have others share my burdens. What an encouragement it is to have even one trustworthy person with whom we can share our wounds and our weaknesses that gnaw at us deep within our heart. When we are willing to let trusted safe people know our struggles, our fears and our needs it is so much easier to face life’s challenges together. We are not meant to live our lives alone. We need others to pick us up when we fall.
Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
ECCLESSIASTES 4:9-10
And we need the prayers of others.
Therefore confess you sins to each other
and pray for each other
so that you may be healed.
JAMES 5:16
Be assured that we can trust God and others with who we truly are. When we finally take this step then we will find we are on the only True Path to healing and maturity.
On the journey with you,
Dave Dravecky