NEWSFLASH ~ people who go to church are humans. Not everyone who goes to church carries the example of Christ. People who are Christians, still make mistakes by saying the wrong thing. I am talking today about when you get hurt in church and you never want to go back again.
Leadership in churches are humans too. I personally have been hurt terribly by leaders many years ago. I have also been very hurt by people as well. Words were spoken that I will never forget and it took time to get through it. I can look back at my life and see how far God has brought me. It wasn't the church that hurt me, it was a few people. Let me say that again, "It wasn't the church that hurt me, it was a few people". It wasn't God who hurt me, but people. God draws us back by his holy spirit to fullness in him. God speaks words to each of us to try again and to be a disciple of him.
DARE TO BE A DISCIPLE ~ Get back up Sparkie
For example: If you have a forest full of trees and there is one or two bad trees, you don't stop going to the forest because of the one or two rotten trees. If you go to the hospital and treated wrong by one doctor, you don't stop going to a doctor, you find a new one. If you can't deal with what you saw in one church, you attend another. You don't stop going to church! God gave his only son (Jesus) just for you and me. There are many churches full of God's spirit, but people are still people. We need to be planted in a good church and develop into what God has called us too.
CHURCH HURTS ~ You must not allow the enemy to take away the one thing that God wanted.
A connect to other believers. Not everyone will speak words of kindness or compassion. If I had let church hurts stop me, I wouldn't be writing this today. In fact, the YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW Ministries (Blog) started as a result of me being told by a Pastor, "I can't pray for you, unless you tell me everything". I wasn't ready to share everything with anyone. I wanted prayer with a Pastor and God. I walked away that day and never returned to that church. It confused my mind and my heart so badly. After much prayer of others who held on for me, here I am today! After my own choice to try again and allow God to restore my heart.
DARE TO BE A DISCIPLE ~
The example begins with each of us
Colossians 3:12-15 English Standard Version (ESV)
12 Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.
DARE TO BE A DISCIPLE ~
I found a new church and began to trust God again. I purposed to get there a little late (to sit on the back row) and to leave a little early (So I wouldn't need to talk to anyone). I wasn't ready to open myself up for more hurts that might come. People will disappoint us and we will disappoint others too. We are human and we are forgiven by God and he wants us to forgive others too. My life isn't about what someone else can do for me, but what I can do according to the word of God. I am to be a disciple of Jesus and so are you my friend. I do make mistakes, need to ask forgiveness and try again.
Luke 17 New International Version (NIV)
Sin, Faith, Duty
17 Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to stumble are bound to come, but woe to anyone through whom they come. 2 It would be better for them to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck than to cause one of these little ones to stumble.3 So watch yourselves.
“If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them.4 Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying ‘I repent,’ you must forgive them.”
5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”
6 He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.
7 “Suppose one of you has a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Will he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? 8 Won’t he rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’? 9 Will he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? 10 So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’”
WHEN YOU GET HURT IN CHURCH ~
Don't allow the enemy (Devil) to steal your joy, your purpose or God's plan for your life.
Get back up and show the devil you are a conquer of all things. It took some time for me to see myself the way God does. I am stronger than yesterdays and when I hear those negative words pop back into my head, I choose to let it go and remind the devil of who I am in God. I have met amazing people in church and I love the connections. I have helps many and many have helped me. A community of people who keep pressing forward. I walk into my church (Hillside Christian Church) in Napa and feel God there. I have co-teach a Women's class on Wednesday nights for over 12 years. I find God amazing how he takes us from a broken place and restores so much more.
I am not saying the way you were treated or a loved one was treated was right. I am saying that God made you more than a conquer of the past and has greater things ahead. I was so broken and I thought I would never go back to a church anywhere, but God had a different plan. Seeing someone get back up again, shows the power of God so strongly. I have heard from others, "If you can do this, I can do this". YES, that is what it is all about. I love God using my life and I don't want to be a person who sits at home and allows anger to grow. I was that person and I felt so alone.
Breaking free ~
I co-taught a book, "Battlefield of The Mind by Joyce Meyer" with my friend Sherry. I learned so much through that study and became so close to Sherry. Had we never did that book or went to church, we might not have ever met. She also ask Darlene and I to be Elves at The Foster Family Christmas Party. I would have never known that experience had she not connected us. You can get connected in places you never thought of while going to church.
Let me pray now for who reads this that is hurt or a loved one of yours:
God, we celebrate this Easter Weekend and we know there are many people who got hurt in church and refuse to go back. Only you God can draw people by your spirit to attend a church, heal a broken heart and restore what was in their lives. I ask largely right now and agree with the person who connects to this blog that freedom of hurts will be gone. That you send your peace to their minds, their hearts and all areas of life. God, you sent your only son JESUS to die for each of us. One season called, "EASTER" and he rose again. We can see your power through movies, lives around us and we can still feel broken. God be the super glue to put lives back together and draw them to a church this Sunday. Make a special connect, like you did me years ago. I felt the need to go to church, while crying, broken and lost inside my own mind. You restores me through some hard times and people can't see that unless they knew me then. I don't know who needs this today, but I have a few people in my own life that need restoring and helping the hurts to be far gone. I thank you now for mending hearts and showing us to take one day at a time. Sharing life with others is great, but we also need to guard our hearts with words. Hear the cry of your people God and mend those broken places today. Giving you thanks ~ AMEN
Friends, I have been there. Broken, lost, defeated and God used people to help me. My teenage daughter to give me post it notes to remind me of who I am. Little by little and day by day, God was restoring me. Years have passed now and I'm writing you because I care and I know the power of God. Miracles happen and lives are restored. Don't let the past stop you from your future. Jeremiah 29:11 A plan, A promise and A future. My prayers continue for you, our family and friends.
If you don't have a home church, come this Sunday to my church. Let Jesus RESCUE you and begin again. If you know someone who needs to read this, please pass it on.
Hillside Christian Center
100 Anderson Road
Napa, CA
3 services to choose from (9am, 11am, 6:30pm)
Breakfast served Easter Sunday at 10:15 -11:00
Kids Easter Egg hurt
I'm happy to say, I LOVE MY CHURCH and I love the connect with it. I've been there for over 15 years now and I've met some amazing people. I am a leader and I continue to learn daily. Our God is a good God and I see how far God has brought my life by one yes to him.
~ Sparkie
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