Heal So You Don’t Bleed On those That Didn’t Cut You

Sometimes we can feel like were being strong and doing the best thing we can do by ignoring some of the hurts we’ve been blown. That, if we just get over it and never give that person or what they did a second glance or thought, it will be done with, and we’ll just, move on. But the reality is, things have wounded us don’t just go away, but end up sitting there, deep down in our hearts, and eventually end up seeping into the relationships we have now, cutting the people closest to us in areas of THEIR heart, all because we didn’t allow God to heal the wounds we took in our own.

There’s a reason why you snap at your significant other sometimes, when they didn’t do anything to warrant it.

There’s a reason you might have trust issues with those closest to you, when they’ve given you absolutely no reason to have them.

There’s a reason why sometimes you feel so down, when you have so many reasons around you to be up. 

There’s a reason why you don’t want to be intimate with your husband, when he is everything you hoped for, and the man you dearly prayed for.

There’s a reason for it all, friend. And it starts with you, going back, and addressing whats been done and what you’ve gone through, so you can give it to God, and then allow the healing hand of Jesus to come in and heal and transform you.

Because God didn’t allow all that’s been done to hurt you and the relationships you are in, but to grow you, and draw you that much closer to Him, so you can shine even brighter, and reflect even more of Him. So don’t let your pain be a tool for the enemy. Let God use it to bring healing and Him, that much more glory.

Find what’s been done, friend. Address it. And then heal from it, so your relationships won’t keep suffering because of it. 💕🙏🏼🙌🏼

Let Go of All that Isnt’t & Love What Is

A few weeks ago my dad really hurt my feelings. Something probably so so small to other people but just so big to me. Like, I turned into a huge baby and couldn’t believe it. At age 34, I had no idea I could let something so small in our relationship affect me like it did. It wasn’t intentional. It wasn’t even something he thought about. It was just, how he does things and what his past and his life today has made him to be.

I talk to my dad often. I go to him a lot. The love that most all kids desire from their earthly dad (regardless of how old you are) is so real.

It took God’s help to accept that this is who my dad is in this area. To accept, that until HE changes his heart, this is how things will be. I told my dad he hurt me that day, and despite his precious heart telling me he was so sorry, I know he had a hard time seeing it. But I now see it. And today I know that I can either listen to the lies of the enemy telling me so many untruths about how I FEEL, or I can CHOOSE to believe all the truths of what God says and what I KNOW. And it helps. I can let go of what my dad unknowingly did and all I want him to still be, and grab hold of the fact that despite what he can’t always give right now, he loves me, with all the love HE has for me, and just because he isn’t always able to show me in all the ways that I want, it doesn’t take away from how much I mean to him, and how much he means to me. That helps, too.

When we want so badly for people to behave the way WE want, and be the people WE want them to be, it results in hurt hearts, unmet expectations, and plain ol’ defeat. But, when we can look PAST the things done, and PRAY to see what God sees, we can then begin to let go of what WE don’t see, and begin to love what’s there, and see glimpses of the people God created THEM to be. And hopefully, more and more, and with each passing day, that’s ALL we will eventually see. 💕 

Don’t Let the Little Bit of Good Forget the Bad

Isn’t it crazy how we can go through such heartache, such affliction, such turmoil at one point in our lives, or heck, even just days ago, and then all of a sudden, we start to forget how bad it was?  We forget crying out to God to help us, to rescue us, to do SOMETHING, and He does, only to find ourselves contemplating if it was even THAT bad? If things even needed to change?

Satan does a real good job trying to steal some of those awful memories and leave us only with the good ones, just hoping we will take the bait and run right back into who or what we were freed from. And friends, if we aren’t replacing what Jesus removed from our lives, with Him, and things that are from HIM, then satan’s tactics WILL work, and we will be RIGHT back where we were before. Brokenhearted, defeated, dirty, messy, and wondering how we ended back in the place we never wanted to be again.

You know the signs. You know the danger zones. And it can happen ever so slightly if you ignore them.

But you also KNOW the truth. It wasn’t good. It was actually terribly bad. And it is up to YOU, to remind YOURSELF of the bad when satan lies to you, and whispers it was good. It is up to YOU, to turn around, face him, and remind HIM of the truth, when he tries to tempt you with the lie. It’s up to you fill your heart and mind with Jesus, so those memories lose their power, and eventually, die.

Don’t return to the vomit. It might have tasted great going down, and whatever or whoever it was might have hooked you back then, but trust me, now that you have been free from them, or it, I can guarantee you, it won’t taste great again. It might have started good. But it ended very bad. And it will again.

Don’t forget how bad it was.

You’re free now, so STAY FREE. Because trust me, going back is NOWHERE you want to be.❤️

“Like a dog that returns to his vomit is a fool who repeats his folly.” Proverbs 26:11.

@sarah.jean.armstrong

You Only Have to Forgive Once Resenting Is Everyday

And you’re the one it usually ends up affecting the most.

What would it look like if you just, forgave them? How much more free would you be, if you could just release whatever they have done, big or small, and finally be free of it?

Forgiving someone isn't letting them off the hook for what they did. It's simply taking them off of YOUR hook, and putting them onto God's hook. It's taking the weight of what they have done to you, and handing it over to God, so it doesn't have power over you.

God never asked you to deal with their sin, friend. He never asked you to make them pay for what they did. It could be big, or it could be something so small that you've been keeping to yourself and in your heart. Something, that maybe the other person doesn't even know quite what it is doing to you, but whatever it is, even if you don’t realize it, it’s affecting you. And you will feel and see how much the moment you let go of it. The moment you release it from your hands, and put it into God’s hands.

He asked us to forgive, as He has forgiven us. To let HIM get justice, as the great Judge HE is, over all of us.

Sometimes we won't feel like forgiving, and that’s okay, but forgivness isn't a feeling. It's a choice, one that God gave you, and me, so WE would be forgiven, and so WE could be free. Free of the endless thoughts. Free of heaviness in our hearts. And free of the injustice that we have been allowing to tear us apart.

So, what is in your heart that you know God is asking you to give to Him? Who have you been carrying on your hook, that needs to be released to His? I know it hurt you, but give it to Him, friend. And then watch the changes that will begin to happen in YOUR heart, when you know you have truly forgiven them.

***Some issues might be harder to do on your own, and if that’s your case, I’d highly recommend finding a Christian Counselor or mentor to help you in this area. ❤️

@sarah.jean.armstrong