I am hurt. No. No one has
hurt my feelings. I am literally hurt. My left ankle is once more tender. It
throbs constantly reminding me in its not so silent way that something is
amiss. You know, I am beginning to think that being hurt is just the way it is
going to be. I know if my left ankle could talk, it would agree. Between tearing
a tendon, crushing my foot, and now whatever I have done, all in a span of less
than twenty four months, I have spent more time “hurt” than healthy over the
past couple of years. Lately, my so-called “friends” haven’t helped with my
ideas about being anything but hurt. When we get together, jokes abound about
me getting old, arthritis setting in, my underlying desire to destroy my left
foot and ankle, and being able to forecast the ever-changing weather here in
Rochester. Honestly, comments that are something akin to “Look. Here comes the
human barometer” are wearing thin. Is it really that bad? Am I really destined
to just be hurt? Am I bound to keep limping around at the gym and keeping my
eye out for a really good deal on a cane? Sometimes I wonder.
Limping around on my ankle
has had one upside. It has served as a reminder to me that a good number of
people limp around in life, but not because of their ankle. As I journey
thought life I am becoming more convinced that most of us walk with a limp. I
realize that most, if not all of us, go through life hurt in one way or
another. Usually the hurt isn’t on the outside. It isn’t something that can
easily be seen or diagnosed with an X-Ray. No. This hurt is deep. It is real.
It is chronic.
The hurt that most of us feel
is a hurt that just won’t go away. It takes a number of forms. Sometimes it
takes the form of self-doubt and insecurity. It whispers to us that we are
unworthy, unloved, and without value in the world. At other times our hurt
seethes inside us as a toxic brew that periodically spills over so that it
hurts others through our anger, our pride, our lust and our narcissism. Our
hurt can shackle us, binding us to thoughts and tendencies that bring us shame
and turn our heads with revulsion that we could ever engage in such detestable
things, things that we cannot wait to do again. Our hurts hangs with us like a
fog that just won’t dissipate. Its chronic nature eventually separates us from
people. It leads to the destruction of our being and put us in distress. In
other words, our hurt destroys the very image of God within us.
I am convinced that most of
us go through life hurt, at least that is what we think we are, hurt. I am
beginning to wonder if hurt is the problem or if hurt is the symptom of a
deeper problem. When I consider what hurt does to us, to me, I realize that our
hurt is known by another name, evil. Evil isn’t something that we talk about a
lot. At most it is the stuff of horror movies, natural disasters and corrupt
foreign governments. Surely evil isn’t the stuff we encounter in our everyday
lives. When I consider Scripture I discover that evil in many ways ends up
looking like hurt.
Jesus once encountered a man
who was fully under the influence of evil. He had so much evil in him that it
was likened to an entire army. Evil hurt that fellow. The influence of evil in
his life separated him from people. It led to destructive behavior and a great
measure of emotional distress. Evil sought to destroy the very image of God in
that man. He was living “hurt.”
So what is the big deal? Why
does it matter if we are hurt or if we are experiencing the influence of evil?
I suppose it matters because as we see in Mark 5, Jesus has power over evil. He
has power to drive that which hurts us from our lives and to restore us to
health. He has the power to drive from us that which seeks to destroy God’s
image so that we might experience the life God has always intended for us. He
has the power over evil. If we will but come to him we will find one who can
lead us to a life that doesn’t hurt. We will find one who will deliver us from
evil.
A fellow traveler,
Blake
Shipp
Spiritual Formation Pastor
What
is my next step?
I
encourage you to consider the following as a way of handing off faith to your
family. . .
Pray for deliverance: Jesus
can deliver us from evil, from that which seeks to destroy what God has
intended for and in us. As a family, this week consider praying for Jesus’
deliverance on behalf of others. Pray for a friend, a co-worker, or a family
member that you know is hurting. Their hurt is a sign of the effects of evil in
their life. Your prayer may be as simple as “Lord, deliver _________ from
evil.” It may be as complex as naming the specific factors that are harming
this person and destroying what God intends for them. Continue praying for God
to move over several weeks, trusting that God will answer in his time and in
his way.
I
encourage you to consider the following as a way of nurturing your own faith. .
.
Seek deliverance: In Jesus we
find life and deliverance from the influence of evil. This deliverance comes
insofar as we are willing to open our lives to Jesus. If you are hurt; that is,
if you experience any of the destructive effects of evil in your life, I would
encourage you to open your life to Christ by attending Celebrate Recovery.
Celebrate Recovery is a ministry that helps people open their lives to Christ
so that they might experience his healing power. Celebrate Recovery meets every
Thursday at 6:30 pm at Browncroft. For more information you may contact me at blake@browncroft.org.
No comments:
Post a Comment