Relinquish

The Lord binds up the bruises of his people and heals the wounds he inflicted.

—Isaiah 30:26b NIV

When you live through suffering, your natural instinct is to bury the pain as deep as you can, but that is not God’s plan. What may be your natural instinct is not His. He never wastes your hurt or what you face, and He does not want you to bury it. His purpose is to use the pain you experience—the things that you regret—the highs and the lows—the fears and the failures—the very things from which you want to hide—for His glory. Your pain is more than just being about you. He wants you to experience the incredible freedom that comes with the presence of His Spirit so that your healing will make a difference in the life of someone else.

Sometimes you want to hide and get away from what you face. You try to build a wall to protect yourself from the hurt, but building a wall doesn't protect you. It imprisons your heart. It imprisons your spirit. It imprisons healing of your own wounds and hinders God’s freedom to move. That wall turns your heart into a heart of stone because, in closing yourself off, you have shut out His presence. But when you allow that wall of false protection to tumble down, He turns your pain into victory, and He heals the wounds that He has allowed to mold your life.

“I'll give you a new heart,” He promises, “and put a new spirit in you. I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:26, NIV). When your heart yields completely to the Holy Spirit, it becomes one of tender spiritual flesh. It is a heart that is malleable, vulnerable, and not afraid of the pain that often accompanies healing. It is heart that is ready to face the hurt of the past or the present head-on and allow Him freedom to do whatever is necessary. Willing to deal with whatever must be faced, that heart knows if God has exposed the pain, He is more than capable of handling all that has caused it.

Do you wish for your life to be real, vulnerable, and willing? Do you wish to experience healing of your mind—your body—your spirit so that He can use you to bring healing to someone else?  The wall keeping your pain tightly in place keeps you from experiencing the freedom of His Spirit. Relinquish your wall. Open yourself to His purpose. Allow Him to heal, move, and use you as He desires. The wounds of life are not meant to bury you. They are meant for you to soar.

©2017 Lynn Lacher