Friday, July 13, 2018

11 - Embracing The Providence Of God Who Is The Healer Of The Heart

This may be a challenging BLOG for some to read.  In my generation there are few extended families that have remained untouched by an unplanned pregnancy.  I know in our family that is the case.  It is a difficult issue to address without opening old wounds.  I have rewritten this several times.  Each time just did not seem adequate.  I don't intend to put words in my mom's mouth. But, I do want to give context, as best I can, to her notes and comments.  I still have not done this justice, but it is what it is.  I trust it will stir your heart and cause you to "look to the hills."

The first thing I saw was her circle around the sentence “Your parents may not have planned you, but God did.” (p 22 note) Like I said, this is a difficult subject.  The Elephant in the room.  In our culture, if the parents were not married or worse when the child was conceived, that has nothing to do with respect to the child’s character – their future – their value.  But unplanned does not mean that God is not sovereign.  Not intended should not mean not wanted, not accepted, or unloved. Although that may be true in our culture, in our families, it is not true from God's perspective.  And that is Good News!

The child is not responsible for the actions of the biological parents. What was mom thinking about when she read those words?  What was she feeling as she thought about her family?  What I hope is that she felt peace, comfort, assurance, love and compassion.  All of that from the heart of God.  (2 Corinthians 1:20) “For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.”  

The thing about the human heart is that when it is wounded, it does not heal in the same way as, say, a broken leg.  With a broken leg, approaching thunderstorms may cause that leg to ache some, but you don’t feel the pain of the fracture.  You can think about it, but try as you might, you cannot conjure up the feeling to relive or re-feel that moment. 

Not so with the heart.  One word might be enough for the emotional pain to rush back just like it was happening again.  The pain you feel is real.  But, in Christ, it does not have to be that way. The thing is, if you will let the Lord bind your wounds, (1 Peter 5:7) “Cast all your cares on Him for He cares for you” (2 Corinthians 1:3) “God is the God of all comfort” there will be scars that remain on your heart, but they are scars, not wounds.  What you cannot do in your heart, God can and will do, if you let Him. 


Scanning the pages for second day to find mom’s comments and notations, I wonder what she might have been feeling as she read the words and made her annotations.  There were a lot of things that were not spoken of in our family. To discuss those things was taboo.  I think there are many families like that.  It’s easy to “throw verses at problems” as if you were throwing water on a fire.  The thing is, the Word is Truth and the Truth will set you free. (John 17:17, John 8:32) “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.” (Psalm 42:5) The Word of God brings healing.
Mom had circled theses scripture references.  
1.     Psalm 139:15, “My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth”.
2.     Psalm 139:16 “Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be”
3.     Acts 17:26 “From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.”
She wrote her birthdate 1-29-25 in the margin.  Underlining the words “Choosing the exact time of my birth.” (p 23 note) God is sovereign. Romans 8:28 says "In all things He works for our good".  In the midst of trouble that’s hard to understand and perhaps even harder to accept.
At the bottom of the page she wrote: “when He was on the cross, I was on His mind.” 
Oh, what peace and assurance she must have felt. She had ministered to so many who struggled with their beginnings. What a great word it must have been.  Reminding her that God is a God of grace and mercy.  As Jesus said to the adulteress, “Woman where are your accusers … neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more.”  (John 8:11) 
God does not make excuses for sin, but He does forgive the sinner through faith in Jesus.  He is the “Healer Of The Heart”.  I think perhaps this was a very difficult chapter for my mom.  Mom, after her second beginning, had great compassion for people.  That compassion was birthed out of her love for God. Psalm 37:4 says “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.”  I believe that the psalmist was saying that when you focus on God and seek Him, He will change the passion of your heart to match His passion.  God had most certainly changed my mom’s heart, He changed mine, and He will change yours if you only ask Him and then let Him.  Pretty cool.

Note: Taken from The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren Copyright © 2002 by Rick Warren. Use by permission of Zondervan. www.zondervan.com

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24 - Living For God

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