Healing From Church Wounds-“Woe” Nellie Part 1

 

“Woe” Nellie

“I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.” ~ Ezekiel 34:16

God has a lot to say about shepherds (pastors or ministry leaders) who focus more on themselves than their “flock”. The danger is that sheep can get scattered and left vulnerable to enemy attacks. Peter also warns us about enemy attacks in 1 Peter 5:8. I talk about the real enemy here.

If you are suffering from church or ministry wounds you may doubt that God is even paying attention to you. If you were wounded in what appears to be a “successful” ministry and one that seems to be “blessed” then you are really feeling alone. The good news is that God sees. He is all knowing. Not only is He aware of the good that HE is doing, He is well aware of your wounding. God will ask leaders about those that were entrusted to their care. All of them. The blessed and the wounded.

What comforted me even more than knowing God would deal with hurtful leaders, is that God will come looking for the scattered sheep. You mean THAT much to God that He will come for you. The question is, will you respond to Him?

In Luke 15:4  Jesus shares a parable about a shepherd who leaves the 99 sheep to go after the one who was lost. Many people believe He is going after a “lost soul.” We know that is true but, what if it also means that He is going after a member of the flock that was scattered?

Ezekiel 34 reveals that you matter to God. God will bind up your injured (crushed) spirit. He will strengthen you in your weakness. God is just and He will handle you with care. He will give those who hurt you a chance to repent (He is merciful don’t forget) and if they choose not to, He will deal with them.

He sees.

For One,

Lisa

Healing From Church Wounds – Vision Can Blind You

What happens when a God given vision becomes all consuming? Maybe you were wounded by a ministry or church that was more passionate about the “vision” than they were about the love of Jesus. God gives us a vision so that we stay the course. It is given to us so that when we are doubtful we won’t quit. God does not give you a vision to fulfill the vision in your strength.

I am so sorry if someone wounded you because they were pursuing the vision of God more than pursuing a deeper relationship with Christ. We are called to love. As we honor the person in front of us, God will bring His vision to pass. People make mistakes, they may think they are doing good and it may seem like God is blessing their ministry.

We need to realize that God is all knowing. Not only does He see the good, He also sees what happened to you! He won’t just give the person, pastor or leader who hurt you a pat on the back for the good they are doing. He will ask them what they did with you.

You matter to God. He sees you, He sees what happened and He wants to work it for your good. I believe He wants to teach you what not to do. You know what happened to you and it was painful. You want to be sure you treat others better than you were treated. Also, you will have a deep empathy for those, like you, who have also been wounded.

Remember you are part of a vast army. As God begins to breathe life into your dry bones, there are others you can encourage.

What valuable lessons did you learn from what happened to you?

For One,

Lisa

Healing From Church Wounds – The Devil Wears Prada

The Devil Wears Prada

In the last video, I asked you to recall two things God has done in your past. It could be something small from last week or something huge from 20 years ago. The reason we must remember His goodness in our spiritual pain is to get our eyes back on Him. If you are like me, you are looking at what happened to you and how you feel. God is too merciful and loving to have done something amazing in your past just to abandon you now or in the future. Jesus is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. It is very important to remember the wonderful things that He has done for you. Although something painful may have happened to you, that does not change the fact that God loves you and that Jesus died for you!

God never sends us into a battle that He didn’t prepare us to fight. I was angry with God for allowing me to be “blindsided” and deeply wounded. I felt that He sent me into a painful environment knowing what would happen. I felt betrayed and abandoned. When I openly shared with God how I felt, He reminded me of how He WAS there the entire time. He reminded me that He DID warn me and was trying to protect me. I just didn’t realize it at the time.

Not long after I became deeply involved in the church that wounded me, He began to speak to me about my identity in Christ. You can download a free pdf here of scriptures of who we are in Christ.  I didn’t spend time asking Him why He was showing this to me. I took it as information, not as revelation. Information is for your head. Revelation is for your heart. God was trying to transform my heart. He knew that once I was forced to leave the church, my identity would be attacked.

How has your identity been affected since your wounding?

For One,

Lisa

Healing From Church Wounds- The Real Enemy

The Real Enemy

When we are suffering from deep spiritual wounds it is very hard not to focus on ourselves. When I was in my valley of dry bone season, I went through times of blaming “them”. Then the enemy must have gotten bored with that and was compelled to heap condemnation on me. I remember starting to think it was ALL my fault. I remember thinking, I should have said this, I should not have said that, maybe I was too honest, (really? too honest in a church…think about that one), I could have done…You get the picture.

It was then that God reminded me that the enemy is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8-10). The enemy used people to hurt me and now the same enemy was using me to stay wounded. He wanted me feeling hopeless, trapped in unforgiveness and bound in bitterness. He enjoyed seeing me as a pile of dry bones. But as I read the verse, God revealed to me that the enemy DID use them to hurt me, but I was being used to, just in a different way.

If hurting someone is a sin and not forgiving someone is also a sin, then I was no different than the ones who hurt me was I? We were both the pawns of a scheming enemy. It was then that I had to tell myself that I would NOT be like them. I would NOT be used by the enemy anymore. I repented to God for my part of the problem and for my inability to “get over it.” I decided to trust God and allow Him to mend my heart. This was not easy and it took time, but God was faithful.

Your homework for this session is:

Read 1 Peter 3:8-14. Ask God to speak to you. Ask Him to show you what you need to know about you in your situation. Ask Him to speak to you about the person/people who hurt you.

Next, list at least 2 things that God has done in your past. Two things that made you aware that God was real and He cared. It could be something simple He did last week or something huge from 20 years ago. Just write them down. God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. Remembering His goodness is important.  God did not show up in your life in the past to abandon you now or in the future.

Just for a moment let’s try and get our eyes off of what was done to us and acknowledge that there is a true adversary that uses people (Ephesians 6:12 and John 10:10). Then, let’s take our eyes off of the people who hurt us for a moment to reflect on what God has done in our lives.

We can be transformed by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:2). Some of us have been crushed for years and I understand this can be hard. I pray that God will begin to shift your perspective.

For One,

Lisa

Healing From Church Wounds- Guidelines

Hi!

I will be leaving the comment section open on my “Rise Above” Facebook page.  The comment section is for prayer requests, comments on things you may be struggling with and of course praise reports on what God is doing in your heat through this series.

This is not a forum for church bashing. Please refrain from naming churches, denominations, ministries, pastors, leaders or any one else for that matter. Our goal is for you to heal and mend your relationship with God. You will never heal properly by trying to get revenge. Also, hurting those who hurt you does not honor God. I will have to delete any posts if it includes names in a negative light.

We will address how to biblically handle those who have hurt you in an upcoming video. If you have a situation that you do not want to be made public, direct message me. I will do my best to assist you or refer you to someone who can.

I am looking forward to this journey!

For One,

Lisa

Healing From Church Wounds – The Backstory

I wanted to share with you the backstory of where I am coming from and why I am doing this. I think it will help you understand why I would tackle such a sensitive topic within the church community.  My heart is not to throw stones at the church or tarnish the name of Jesus in any way. I love God and believe in His church.

That being said, there is a large number of people who have walked away from church because of the wounds they received there. Some have even walked away from their faith completely. I know many who were gifted in ministry who no longer want to do what they once did. My story includes what God showed me in Ezekiel 37 in the Valley of Dry Bones. It is not OK with God when people suffer from things said and done to them by people who profess a love for Christ. But God is good, faithful, loving and the ultimate healer.

This series is about healing. I am excited to share this journey with you and to see what God will do in you and through you!

For One,

Lisa 

Healing from Church Wounds ~ Introduction

Have you been hurt by a church or ministry? Don’t turn your back on Jesus. Let me share what God has done & be encouraged that what the enemy meant for harm God meant for good!  Here is a quick intro, but stay tuned there is more to come!

For One,

Lisa

It’s A New Season!

It has taken me 4/12 years to be able to volunteer in a church. Yesterday was a new day for me and it’s a new season! Church wounds are very painful and very real. But God heals! Don’t turn your back on Jesus if you have been wounded.

Start again at John 3:16 like I did. If you seek Him you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:13).

Stay tuned for my upcoming series on Healing From Church Wounds.

For One,

Lisa