By: Donna Clark
There’s a quote from Mark Twain that carries much truth. “If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and a man.” You can care for and love a dog that has been abused and that dog will be loyal to you till its dying day. However, this is not always true of humans. Sometimes, the people we love the most will hurt us the most. It’s highly likely that someone will break your heart, lie to you, say hurtful things about you, maybe even reject you. In fact, someone may have already done one of these to you, and the pain inflicted has at times been almost unbearable. You loved hard and were wounded deeply. It’s easy to love when all is right with the world. The marriage is in the honeymoon stage, the children are acting right, co-workers are all in agreement with one another. However, none of us live in that state all the time. Even the Bible tells us that “offenses will come.” God knew we would get hurt, but He doesn’t want us walking around wounded, He wants us to be healed and whole. We must learn to love like we’ve never been hurt.
James Garfield, our twentieth president, was shot by a would-be assassin only four months into his presidency. He died three months after. It wasn’t the bullet that killed him, it actually did not penetrate any organs, not a fatal injury. What did take his life was the on-going attempts to retrieve the bullet lodged behind his pancreas. Unfortunately, unsterilized instruments and dirty hands were an open invitation for the infection that eventually took his life.
Sadly, when we’ve been hurt, we continue to replay the bad memories over and over again in our mind. We poke and prod. In some cases, it pushes us to seek revenge, and then bitterness, anger, and a hardened heart develops. And it’s not always rage that rears its ugly head; it’s can be a deep hurt for which there seems to be no consolation, no healing, no understanding. Whatever the reaction to the pain, the playing of the action or words over and over in our minds will be the death of us. God does not want us to live with the hurt. He wants to heal what has been torn apart.
I think each of us can say we know what it’s like to be hurt, especially from someone we love much. Some hurtful actions can change everything about you and your family for the rest of your life. There are powerful disappointments that can affect the dynamics of relationships, but there is hope in knowing that God can make all things new. He can take what was meant for harm and bring good from it.
I’ve given you a condensed version of the introduction to a powerful book, Love Like You’ve Never Been Hurt, written by Jentezen Franklin. The more I listen to the life stories that people tell, the more I see there is tremendous hurt that many are trying to deal with today, maybe from an event that took place many years ago still in need of a healing of the heart. If you find yourself stuck in the pain, poking and prodding, feeling as if all the wind has been knocked out of your sails, not knowing what to do or which way to turn, this book is for you. I’d like to take the opportunities I have with these articles to pass on to you the direction and wisdom he gives through his writing. I’ll give you the highlights of what he shares, but would encourage you to pick up a copy for yourself. As he shares his own personal hurts, he will guide you with truth that can help you to realize that you are loved deeply and healing is possible. Love is a weapon that can shatter division and rebuild what was broken. Love is the only answer to fractured relationships. Jentezen encourages love over hurt, and in this book he will guide you and give you the strength to press forward. If you are a person of faith, determine today to move your eyes off your
situation and open your ears to God’s voice. If you listen, you will hear God telling you He is on your side, fighting for you, and with Him you are more than a conqueror over the hurt.
Future articles will be focused on restarting your heart and living again in peace. If you’re one who’s been hurt and still struggling to survive, stay with me, I want to offer you some hope.
Remember – it is never God’s will for the wound to kill us, healing is possible.
By: Donna Clark
