With or Without God?
- kyafae
- Oct 17, 2021
- 6 min read
I recently did a post about the top two things you need to heal. Every human needs time and they need to put in the work.
But, before they stand in that position, there is something else that will ensure your full healing and that is having God by your side.
I am not an evangelist, but, I know the Holy Spirit has saved my life more than once.
I know that only God's supernatural physician abilities have healed wounds that would otherwise remain festering.
God has declared this for his people in Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV), "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." In this verse, he is talking to the Jewish Israelites in the Old Testament, before Jesus was born. But, it holds true for every believer. We are made in God's image, he offers you abundance, he only wants what is good for you. Psalm 13:5 (ESV), "But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation."
Matthew 23:37 (ESV) tells us what God is asking from us: "And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." He does not do that without showing how HE loves us, again and again and again. Steadfast love- unbreakable, protective, complete love.
Let's take a glimpse of what a healing journey looks like without Christ. Whose protection would you have? Who would fight for you? Who is there to comfort you in your deepest shame and grief? Who helps you see you don't have to have shame for anything that has ever happened to you or anything you did? Who would continue to help you grow not only out of the abuse, but in every area of your life? Who ensures that your dreams can actually come to life? Who will teach you how to live better?
Emotional pain lights up the same part of the brain the physical pain does. It can be life-debilitating.
Without God, the answers to any of those questions are unsure and other-dependent. People will let you down along the way. God never will. I am not say that if you reach out, people will not try to help. Because we will. But, everyone has their own life and sometimes, that may conflict with a need you have and they are unavailable. Perhaps what you need cannot be given by someone else. Counselors are not trained to give you answers. They are trained to help you explore your emotions. Life coaches aren't always trained therapists, they are looking at the big picture. So, whereas they may help you set goals and overcome obstacles, they cannot tell you what to do. They may be a little more forward with feedback than a therapist or counselor because of the nature of the relationship. Your friends may not always be able to be objective, especially if they hate seeing you hurting. They mean well, but sometimes they are inclined to say what you want to hear. Or they will not know how to comfort you or they may influence you to engage is risky behavior to take your mind off the pain.
Getting substantial help from a whole system of people makes sense. This just needs to be created with intentional care. You can pray about that for yourself!!
I experienced spiritual abuse both from my ex-husband and the church institution where we were faithful, active members. Spiritual abuse can look like many things. For me, it was having scripture used against me in a manipulative, controlling way. It was leadership bullying me to stay quiet, tried to shame me, told me I had no right to be angry, that I was failing as a wife. Even when I did what they told me I should be doing, against every fiber of my being, my marriage did not improve. So, I understand that trusting God may be difficult or scary.
Maybe you didn't grow up in the church or you think you should be strong enough to do it on your own. Maybe you are so angry at God because of the abuse that you have no desire to trust him.
However, God is a relational God.
He created Adam and Eve for each other and we were his greatest creation. After he made the world, he kept saying "It is good." But, after he made humans, he said, "It is very good." We are set apart from anything else in creation. Because Adam and Eve sinned, it separated us from God. Until God comes back for all his believers, we will never have the kind of relationship with him that Adam and Eve did before they ate of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, the only tree they were not to eat from.
God is so relational that he created a way for us to not be held liable for our sins before him. He gave his son, Jesus Christ, as our substitute, to be tortured, mocked and hanged on a cross until death in our place so we can have that garden-esque relationship with him in the future. In eternity. All we need to do is recognize that we are as sinful as Adam and Eve and that we cannot do life without God. We need to ask God to forgive us for doing the wrong thing, sometimes over and over, and agree to be obedient to him. To allow Him to pursue and bless you and have a personal relationship with him through prayer, reading the bible, worship, serving him and thinking less on ourselves. He created every person that ever lived. He knew us before he even created the world. He is the standard of love, truth, holiness, justice, mercy and grace. Ephesians 2: 8 (ESV version) says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God."
Mercy is not getting what you deserved. Grace is getting something even though you don't deserve it. We cannot save ourselves by being moral people, we cannot do enough good works or buy our way into his presence (eternity, heaven). Without Christ, we will stand before God and he will see only us and our sins. He cannot be merciful if you never asked for it. He wants to bestow his grace on us. He is all-knowing, everywhere at once, timeless, the most powerful being that has always been and will always be. It is hard to wrap your mind around his greatness. But, if you have a personal relationship with him, he will show you who he is. And if you are saved by believing and confessing that believe and for being sorry for being a sinner, Christ will stand in front of you when you go to God. And God will see his spotless, perfect son- not your sins. The price has been paid for every sin you have ever committed and every sin you will commit- but you have to accept that gift. John 14:10 (NIV), "Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
I have said for a long time that I can make good plans. But God's are ALWAYS better than I could ever imagine and sometimes, he moves so fast it is hard to keep up!!
This is my favorite chapter in the bible, Psalm 91. https://www.blueletterbible.org/niv/psa/91/2/s_569002
It is a very personal decision. But, for me, I cannot imagine doing life without God. He has helped me love myself, giving me this dream of being before you right now. He has healed me supernaturally from wounds that otherwise would not have ever been able to close and scar. I had so much emotional pain that I couldn't function, but he comforted me. I did not experience loneliness. He was constant and put people in my life that could help. I would love to talk to you more about this personally, so please email me!!
John 8:12 (NIV) says, "When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
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