We're in this "two-gether"!

I have discovered something about pain. It is a common fiber that can knit two hearts together. Someone that you never suspected would be in your life, and share your heartache with you, is often the one who knows your pain because of enduring their own pain.

Through troublesome times God has given me a voice that confesses and he has made me silent at times. And that's a task because I have never been silent. But He has caused me to have a hearing ear and a sensitive heart and listen out for someone else's pain. It's having walked through my own pain that makes me so in tune when I spot others in pain. And I have been blessed by friends on the other end of the phone or computer who bear their heart and soul to me and in turn allows me to bear mine.

I don't think that is by coincidence. I believe that we are designed to walk through life together, bearing one another's burdens. Someone who has been a great mentor to me and a huge inspiration is a man who himself has endured difficulties in his life. Having him share his experiences with me and then guiding me based on his own experiences has literally changed the path I am on. And sometimes I don't know if he is truly aware of what an impact he has made in my life. It is through his obedience and through sharing his heartache and recovery that I was able to make sense of my own pain.

I come from a proud family, one that didn't always disclose their hurt or dysfunction. I learned very early in life to have a stiff upper lip and at least pretend like everything was "fine". A friend of mine the other day told me that when he was going through a difficult time in his life, something that was very public, that when someone would ask him how he was he would say "never better". Yet he admitted to me that inside he was dying.

A verse that I have literally clung to comes from Psalm 32. David wrote of his turmoil while refusing to face his sin. Psalm 32:3-4 says "when I kept silent, my bones grew old through my groaning all the day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me". I remember a time when I carried so much with in myself that my body literally ached. I suffered from anxiety and insomnia. And I was so afraid of someone finding out what I was going through. Sometimes freedom comes when we release what we are so desperately holding onto and we confess our heart to God and even to a friend. There is "relief " in being discovered.

Sometimes the Struggle...

A man found a cocoon of the emperor moth and took it home to watch it emerge. One opening appeared, and for several hours the moth struggled but couldn't seem to force its body past a certain point.

Deciding something was wrong, the man took scissors and snipped the remaining bit of cocoon. The moth emerged easily, its body large and swollen, the wings small and shriveled.

He expected that in a few hours the wings would spread out in their natural beauty, but they did not. Instead of developing into a creature free to fly, the moth spent its life dragging around its swollen body and shriveled wings.

The constricting cocoon and the struggle necessary to pass through the tiny opening are God's way of forcing fluid from the body into the wings. The "merciful" snip was, in reality, cruel. Sometimes the struggle is exactly what we need. Author Unknown

Come fly with me.....

Ever wonder why Geese fly in a V? We all could learn something from this facinating bird! The aerodynamic V shape reduces the drag on each bird in comparison to a bird flying alone. Geese can achieve a greater distance of 70 percent when flying in groups. When the lead bird tires it drops back into the V and another bird moves forward. Each bird takes their turn in the responsibility of leading. If a goose is injured or sick during the flight and falls out, two other geese fall out with it and remain with that goose as a protector until it is able to fly again or until it dies. At that point they rejoin the formation. What a demonstration of teamwork and loyalty.

It amazes me how God created these animals who sometimes are more compassionate than we humans are. There is so much to learn from these birds. And there is so much to be learned from our Creator who created all of us and made us in a way that we should work together and help each other. When someone we know "falls out" what is your reaction? Do you fall out and stay by their side until they regain their strength or do you keep flying on without a care or just simply afraid to take the time to stay by the side of someone who is hurting.

I love that God placed simple instructions for us not only in the bible but in the way he created nature! I have worked in the field of Nursing and one of the common sayings you hear about nurses is "they eat their young", meaning watch out if you're new to the game. Its so easy to watch people fall and then set back and place judgement on them. I've experienced that myself. It takes a strong person to stand up and help someone else who is broken and needs "protecting" until they are ready for flight. Yet even the geese follow their Creator's plan and know when to fall out and help one of their own.

Brokeness, An Opportunity!

Sometimes I think the people who have suffered the most brokeness are the best to minister to others in need. I have had the opportunity to do that; walk through brokeness. I'm not talking about a bad day at work or small fight with a family member . Im talking about "brokeness", the kind where you lay down to sleep at night and you dont know if you can face the next day. And if you do, you arent sure whose there with you. Im talking about the kind of brokeness that puts you walking around in a daze because you arent sure where to turn next.
I say that I have had the "opportunity" to walk through it because it was an opportunity for me to see the other side. I was able to experience pain and heartbreak in its best form. One day everything seemed perfect and then one day I woke up in the middle of battling addiction, with a husband who took me for better or for worse, but decided he didnt want the worst after all. I was alienated from friends and family, people who still to this day are a little afraid to be too close to me. My friends, well thats another story. People that I had been there for over twenty years or more simply disappeared. And there I was left with two choices, wither up and die or pick up my cross and let Jesus carry it for me. I chose the later. There were a few select people in my life that I felt I needed to fight for. I spent nights alone crying and went to sleep many times just telling God to hold me.
Coming through that experience made me aware of what kind of pain others go through and I am one of those people that had ignored them in their time of need and heartbreak. Specifically as a rehab nurse I was extremely tough on addicts. And being brought to my knees gave me a new passion for those that others are afraid of.
One verse that I kept hearing in my mind was was Matthew 25:40, "Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as you have done unto one of the least of these brethern you have done unto me". Every broken person that passes in front of us is our opportunity to "do unto the least of these". Easter came and went and I watched as many people post "Happy Easter" or "lets remember the real reason for Easter", and I wondered how many homeless people they passed on the way to church or on the way to lunch. I wondered if they found out tommorow that their best friend was in the middle of an addiction would they be there.
You see we have the chance to celebrate Easter everyday, or for that matter Christmas too. Im thankful for my opportunity to search the soul of brokeness. It has made me aware of my surroundings. Its caused me to lay aside the frivolous things in life and go down the road less traveled. And its made me painfully aware of things that just arent important anymore. When my daughter Rachel was young she couldnt stand to pass up a homeless person. We would circle around and go to McDonalds and buy a happy meal with a large ice water. After we had given the meal to someone who needed it I would turn to her and say "you just fed Jesus". When is the last time you went out of your way to help someone in pain or in need? When is the last time you fed Jesus?