Free From Hurt Pt. 1

Special note from the publisher.

The following article does not reflect the present church that we (Quinn and Shirleen) attend nor the leaders of its congregation. The content is to focus on one thing only, and that is dealing with hurt. Our intent is to help those that are hurting, not to slander the church, our family or friends. In any event that one is offended, please accept our apology in advance. Please continue to read the article with our intent in mind. Q.M.

Free From Hurt

by Shirleen Mitchell

11-3-00

Hurt, defined in the dictionary as to purposely or unintentionally cause pain. I used to be a victim of hurt but God delivered me from that bondage. And now God has commissioned me to help others that suffer silently with hurt. As I remember I would seek out books and articles on healing from hurt, building up self esteem and moving forward after being victimized. In all the reading that I did I never found a true solution for breaking free of the bondage. I learned how to cover up how I was truly feeling and put on a mask in front of others so they would not notice the terrible pain that was continually ripping through my heart. I would cry in solitude as the adversary would replay the things that were said or done to me over and over again in my mind.

I didn't go to my church family/leaders because some of them were the ones who had actually done damage to me and I had no trust in them. (This does not refer to the church I presently attend). I would find that situations arose where I was again the victim of hurt. After feeling as though I could not take any more, I finally asked God why. God brought to my attention that I need to face the hurt and get over it.

I really want to help free others from hurt therefore, I am going to take you step by step through the process I went through. You may have been searching long time and finally God is using me to help bring you out of the bondage of hurt. The process was not attained and achieved in one session so this article will be continued... until you are free from hurt!

After receiving from God and confirmation from my wonderful husband that I needed to face my hurts when my pastor initiated an alter call for healing I was in line. I asked God to heal me and take the hurt away, when I went back to my seat rejoicing that I was delivered, I believed that I was free. Little did I know that I was approaching a major setback. A few days later I was devastated by someone hurting me! I felt the hurt, anger and justified unforgiveness. When talking with my husband he asked me a question about forgiving. I quickly responded, "why should I forgive them when I was the victim." The Holy Spirit used my husband to minister to me about forgiveness, realizing that I must first forgive those before God can heal me.

"For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." Mtt.6:14 & 15

"Then came Peter to him and said, Lord oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven." Mt.18:21 & 22

"And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." Eph. 4:32

"Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots." Lu.23:34

Though I felt justified to harbor unforgiveness, unforgiveness is a sin. After all, in most cases I was innocent and definitely the victim of hurt. But, I was reminded of Hebrews 10 :30, " For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people."

Step 1

The very first step you must take is asking God to help you to forgive, yes forgive those who hurt you. Then YOU MUST FORGIVE and LOVE them just as Jesus loved those who were crucifying Him on the cross. It is helpful to name each person and start with a prayer such as this:

"Heavenly Father, I thank and love You for loving me first. Please forgive me for not forgiving those who have hurt me. Today I want to forgive______ for hurting me. I know that I can do all things through You because You are my strength. Replace the unforgiveness in my heart with Your love and please help me to stop hurting. Thank You. Amen."

This was my first step into freedom from hurt. I forgave everyone that had ever hurt me, even from childhood, no matter what offense had been done to me. As I started to pray a prayer very similar to this one, the pain, anger and unforgiveness that I was experiencing from hurt began to be released. God began to fill the voids in my heart with His love and strengthened me. I felt great and refreshed.

The adversary left me alone for awhile, then he started replaying the incidents which caused me the most hurt. I realized that I needed to be more aware of the enemy and his tricks, so my husband suggested that we set aside a day for fasting and consecrating.

This led to the next step.

Step 2

Secondly, you must memorize scripture in order to maintain you freedom. The word of God is powerful and I find when the enemy start harassing me I can resist him with scripture. Reminding Satan that he is already defeated with the word of God and praising God for the victory will make the enemy flee. This is an excellent help for me because it keeps me from dwelling on past hurts.

While fasting, Luke 4:4 was impressed upon my heart,

"And Jesus answered him saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God."

God revealed that I needed to have the word planted in my heart so that I could use it as a weapon against the adversary. I began to memorize scriptures that would help me maintain my deliverance from hurt.

"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." James 4:7

"No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord." Is. 54:17

Step 3

Third, I needed to face those who had hurt me (if possible). ONLY WITH GOD'S GUIDANCE did I go to those who had hurt me at my former church, in my family and in past relationships and expressed to them that I loved them and forgave them for the hurt they caused. This was the hardest step for me because I was the victim not the victimizer but WITH GOD, I did it! For those who God did not lead me to go to because they lived out of town, had passed away or may be harmful to me again, I wrote letters of forgiveness that I never mailed. In a way this, gave me closure to the hurt caused by them.

You will need to forgive and final the matter. This not only starts new cordial relationships but you also will be respected by the person(s) who hurt you because you have set an example to them by walking "Christ-like."

'Been there?

E-mail me at:

Shirleen@hearministries.net for questions or comments.

Free From Hurt Part 2

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