Wednesday May 6, 2009 HOW SICK?
>From the bottom of your feet to the top of your head there is no healthy spot left on your body - only bruises, sores, and fresh wounds. They haven't been cleansed, bandaged, or soothed with oil. Isaiah 1:6 Today we start in one of my favorite books of God's Word, not only is it the book He used to get my attention, but it is the verse He used to show me just how deep the wounds of my soul were. Not only had the abuse affected my soul, but also my mind and body. My emotions were so raw that I could not make rational decisions about anything. My life was in shambles. Several years earlier, a friend asked me to read Isaiah 54:4-8, "'Don't be afraid, because you won't be put to shame. Don't be discouraged, because you won't be disgraced. You'll forget the shame you've had since you were young. You won't remember the disgrace of your husband's death anymore. Your husband is your maker. His name is the LORD of Armies. Your defender is the Holy One of Israel. He is called the God of the whole earth. 'The LORD has called you as if you were a wife who was abandoned and in grief, a wife who married young and was rejected,' says your God. 'I abandoned you for one brief moment, but I will bring you back with unlimited compassion. I hid my face from you for a moment in a burst of anger, but I will have compassion on you with everlasting kindness,' says the LORD your defender.'" God is a gentleman. He will not force Himself on anyone. This is totally contrary to the actions of our abusers. Also, God cannot look on sin. So, during the time of our abuse, because maybe we did not know Him personally, He could not come to our assistance. I don't know about you, but during the years of my abuse none of my family members were Christians. No one was praying for me. I had no blanket of protection to cover me. Does that mean that the children of Christians will never suffer abuse? I don't think so. Yet, I think that the wounds our children may suffer at the hands of an abuser will not go as deep as our wounds. If we could do a survey of people in prison, I honestly believe we would find that at least 90% of them were sexually abused. When the soul is wounded utter confusion (Satan) rules. Until we submit to God, giving Him total permission to work in our lives, Satan's power over us will still come through those unclean wounds from our abuse. God wants you to be healed, not only for your sake, but for the sake of His Kingdom and others who suffer. Please trust Him today to heal you - He is with you right now waiting to embrace you with His love. Father, I confess that I have been very angry with you on the inside. Often, I tried to cover up my pain by being super religious, but the power of Your Holy Spirit prevailed and broke me where you could begin your work. I praise you for the pain and the problems that are molding me into all that You want me to be. I love you, and I am sorry for the years of running from you. Now, I choose to run to you. Thank you for holding me. Your child A precious sister in Christ responded to yesterday's devotional and I felt you just might be encouraged by what she shared with me...yes, I got her permission...! There are several of us who have children who have taken the "road most traveled." Some have returned and some are still out there...this sister shares some hope... In His Hope, Sharon My Dear Sharon - I know you don't need another e-mail to read, but here goes anyway... As I have mentioned before, I have four grown children, all of whom, got into drugs/alcohol very heavily. There are now 22 grandchildren and our 10th and 11th greatgrandchildren will be born this year.! One of my daughters, lost her children in 1995 and steadily went down hill. I had the oldest who was 11 at the time this happened. Robbie, my grandson, is now 25, and unfortunately an alcoholic. but back to my daughter. God is so Good --- My daughter has been clean now for about five years, had rotting teeth and got them finally fixed through a dentist who was kind enough to put her on a payment plan and give her a very cheap price. My daughter also graduated from college on the Dean's list and since then has been counseling pregnant addicted women at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore. Although the government grant that funded her work has now ended, she was able to get another job in Annapolis, MD doing drug counseling. She is a wonderful Christian woman and works tirelessly to help others through her church, her family, her job and any place she can. She is sick though and undergoing treatment for that (Hepatitis C). I just wanted to share this and GIVE ALL THE GLORY TO GOD WHO IS SO GOOD. My daughter is 43 years old and it took an awful long time for her to get through it all. But again, God is Good and He does things in his own time. With much love and prayers for you and yours, Barbara ******************************************* O. Addison Gethers e-mail address : [email protected] or [email protected] window live messenger: [email protected] aim: durangoadd64 skype: cowboys62 yahoo messenger: OADDISONGETHERS --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Deaf-Blind Inspirational Life Group" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/DBILG?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
