Heart Tracks - Crippled

     A good brother recently said that he was painfully aware of how his deep love and intimacy with Christ, a relationship of deep riches for his inner man, didn't always show forth in his outer man in how he related to others.  I think this is a difficulty for all of us, and one of the great tragedies is that we seem able to only see the imperfect outer man  What would be the case if we could see others as Christ does?  What would be the result if, as we looked at another, especially within the church, we would see past the imperfect flesh, and see who those without Him could be, and who those who are His truly are?  Would we be so quick to cast people out of our lives and our fellowships for their failures, great or small?  To cease throwing away relationships because we are unable to see Christ in them, and through them?  Could we admit that perhaps we are unable to see Him in them because we're unable to see Him in ourselves?  The veil remains over our hearts, and because of it, our sight is deeply flawed.

     Jesus said that the first great command was to "love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind."  Christine Caine says that "We do love Him with our hearts, souls, and mind, but that our hearts are broken, our souls wounded, and our minds tormented."  Because of this, we're crippled.  Crippled in our relationship with Him, and so, crippled in our relationships with all others.  Our wounds have caused us to build walls, walls that we add onto, make thicker, higher, all the time.  Because of these wounds, we consciously or unconsciously make vows.  Vows that we will never allow anyone to hurt us in such a way again.  A wall of isolation has been constructed, and no one is ever fully allowed to "get to us" again.  Little do we realize that in doing so, we've included God in that vow as well.  These vows block His entry into these wounded places.  And so, we go on, leaving a trail of broken relationships behind.  We'll not be disappointed again, and at the first sign that another may do just that, we run from them, running from Him at the same time.  We cannot see that what we so desperately desire is what we so desperately seek to avoid.  To yield to His healing requires we be vulnerable, and we've already decided we'll not be that, so we go on, and on, and on.....in our lameness.
    Who have you and I been guilty of doing this with?  We all have.  Just how deep does the woundedness in us go?  How crippled have we been in our relationships with others?  How crippled is our relationship with Him?  Can we even see over our selfmade walls to answer that?
Paul said that there is a veil over our hearts that only Christ can remove and if we allow that, we will see Him, ourselves, and others with clear eyes.  His eyes.  Our hearts and minds begin to be renewed.  Does the veil yet remain for you and I?  Which path will we continue to live on?  The path that is lived out of our woundedness or of our wholeness?  One will continue to leave a trail of broken and lost friendships, marriages, families, and churches.  The other will live from a place of wholeness in Him, the fruit of which will be restoration and reconciliation.  One will live deeply in Him, the other outside of Him.  In Matthew 11:28, Jesus invites; "Come unto Me, ALL of you...."

All of ourselves, without walls, given to all of Himself, that we might receive all that He is.  Cripples no more.  Made whole IN Him, that we might be whole people to one another.

Blessings,
Pastor O