Still Standing While Wrestling With the DarkSample

Wounded Warrior

We all have been wounded. No one gets through life unscathed. No one. When people we love, who are supposed to love us back, hurt us, betray us, reject us, or abandon us, it can take months and sometimes years to recover. The enemy loves to use our relational wounds to knock us down and keep us down.

Being wounded by someone you love can be beyond hard to recover from at times, and it is vital that we learn to allow God’s light to shine into the dark areas of our soul where we feel hurt.

Have you been there?

I had a moment when I decided to not give any private details about my life to anyone ever again. I went into protection mode, and it worked for a little while, but eventually it was a lonely place to live. Let me save you time—don’t try it. It does not work. It is mentally, emotionally, and spiritually unhealthy, and so I had to figure out how to trust again. I had to read God’s Word and let his light shine into my darkness. I had to learn to forgive, to trust, to let go of my bitterness, and to learn healthy boundaries so I could keep standing for another day.

In Matthew 9:12, Jesus presents himself as the great physician. He came for the sick. It may be painful to obey God and forgive those who have mistreated you, but he wants to heal you, and forgiveness is the only way. He does not want you to suffer in bitterness.

Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.

Hebrews 12:14–15 NIV

You see, when we pray and are in God’s Word, our heart becomes more like God’s heart. God’s heart is full of mercy and grace toward us, and so the closer we are to him, the more grace and mercy we can give others.

Friend, be strong. Be present and feel your feelings and then let your hurt go and stand firm in your faith. God loves you.