**Update** first and foremost, the Gospel of Christ is not ever compromised…No Not ever!
First, I am sorry for not blogging for so long….. *sigh* but I hope to be here much more.
I am recently partnering with Samaritans Purse in order to create “safe” church. Sounds funny doesn’t it? Shouldn’t church be safe? Altho many are very safe, the abused have a hard time feeling safe, even there. Since statistics are showing a woman is abused every 3 minutes(that is reported), not including men, and children, its imperative for the church to not just close our eyes to this, and learn how to reach out to them. It’s not the old way of banging on a door and say “are you going to heaven or hell?”. Seriously! As a overcomer in this area, I can tell you that just pushes an abused person farther from truth.
An abused person, already has trouble believing it’s not their fault. When hearing of a God who loved so much HE died for them, it holds no water, only because the abused only see the pain they have been through, and wonder why? Why would a loving God who died for me, and knit me together, place and abandon me in the life I am in? That is not the kind of love an abused person can relate to.
We (the body) need to become more compassionate, more hopeful, less judgemental.
Jesus spoke to the woman in the temple, sitting in a corner, curled up…and HE extended HIS hand, and said “Woman, you are loosed!” She was freed from whatever caused her to sit in a vegetative state, curled up, wondering if it was like the fetal position? Ah, if you have been abused or hurt, you know what I am talking about.
We need to learn to teach more on what we are created for, and being beaten, raped or terrified is not what we the creation was made for. We need to learn more ourselves the attributes of God, we need to get in our Old Testaments as well, to see stories like Joseph…he didn’t deserve what happened to him either, but God took the bad and HE made it good. HE is still the same as HE was then..today. He still forgives, and changes lives. He still touches the Lepers, or whatever you may call the unlovely today. His mission is to set the captives free…. as the body we have captives who need freed, loosed…probably sitting near us on Sundays, maybe the stranger who walks in late, and sits in the back…Make no mistake…God is near to the broken-hearted…
ponderings of a princess... 
The Spirit is moving across our land and the messages all blend in beautiful notes of harmony. I see and hear the hand and voice of God.
hey Gracie! love you! I hear and see the voice of God too…Oh how HE loves us!
I’ve only recently come to the place of admitting abuse. I kept it hidden for a very long time because I didn’t actually see the mistreatment as abuse, but what I deserved for being me. I had been conditioned to think I shouldn’t expect anything different in this life…no one was interested, so why talk? I’m still finding it hard to get “my story” written…but I must AMEN your thinking here:
We need to learn more ourselves the attributes of God, we need to get in our Old Testaments as well, to see stories like Joseph…he didn’t deserve what happened to him either, but God took the bad and HE made it good. HE is still the same as HE was then..today.
This is what I’ve heard Him saying to me. Teach my attributes, Michelle, not your story, but mine. And that is counter to what the blog-world seems to be saying. Of course, I understand the need to relate to others, and sharing our stories is the best way to do that (word of our testimony, right?). But, I feel so much of the time I need to focus on Him…more than me. Focusing on me keeps me in a victim mentality. I’m not a victim, but a victor…in Him.
(I’m not really sure if all that makdes any sense, just where my thoughts went after reading your post. SOOOO glad you’re gonna start writing again. I’m holding you to it!!! Love you, Darla! ♥ )
Michelle!!!! learning his attributes was a huge player in overcoming my past. Just one of the many study tools HE laid on my lap one at a time that first couple years in learning to know Him…it really is what we need to know, not so much what others think HE is…Love you girl! miss you much!