GOD CAN HEAL YOUR BROKEN HEART - Styling With Sheila J

There can be many reasons why we are left with a broken heart: the death of a loved one, divorce, loss of a job, loss of status, loss of health, betrayal by a friend, loss of a child and, yes, loss of your childhood. They leave a hole in our hearts; an emptiness that we fell could never be filled.

Even though we have these holes in our hearts, I am here to tell you that there is hope for us, and for all the broken hearted because there is a Healer who will mend our broken hearts. As David said in Psalms 147:3: “He heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds.” God wants to heal us of all of our wounds.

Firstly we need to recognise the pain and acknowledge that it is OK to hurt. Sometimes we seek to cover the pain by ignoring it or through other means like the use of alcohol or drugs, which will only cause us to get infected and reverse the healing process. Like a deep skin wound, we must apply the right ointment so we can begin to heal or else it can get infected and become worse. We cannot ignore our pain and think it will go away. It is during this time that we need a lot of love, encouragement and hope restored. We realise how weak we are and see our great need for God.

We need to seek the Healer. Seek God as our Healer. Just like you tell a doctor your symptoms, tell God how much you were wounded and need His healing touch. He will hear the cries of the broken. God the Father wants to reach down, take your hand, and walk you through your pain.

King David said in Psalms 56:8, “You number my wanderings; put my tears into Your bottle; are they not in Your book?” God was so aware of David that He even collected his tears. In the same way God is involved and aware of our pain, our joys, our failures, our accomplishments.

“The LORD is close to the broken hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit,” wrote David (Psalms 34:18, NIV). Ask and receive God’s love and encouragement, because He is very near to you. God can work with a heart that has a hole in it, because the need is so great for it to be filled.

Let God use you to encourage others through their pain. By your own pain you will be able to understand and help in a far greater way. Christ our Saviour was in all points tested and understands all that you go through. He reached out to us by giving His life so that we would be healed.

Recognise that it takes time to heal; even after several years of being wounded, there will still be a hole in yourheart, but it will be much smaller because of God. Every time you feel God’s presence, every time you see God’s intervention in your life, every time you reach out to someone else, every time God grants you blessings, the hole in my heart gets smaller and is being replaced with God’s heart.

Lastly we should give grace instead of judgement. When others fall short of our expectations, we should choose to show them grace, which is defined as mercy, favour, and pardon. Jesus showed you and I grace rather than judgement when He died to pay the penalty for our sins. He says in Matthew 7:1-2;“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Trust the Lord to examine the heart and motives of those who may have hurt you, and leave all judgement to Him. You will find that letting go of this responsibility is tremendously liberating, and it will allow God to fully heal and restore your heart.