Can I Really Start Over?Sample

"What does your blood pressure cuff read?" my doctor asked me.

"199/120," I replied fearfully.

"You need to get yourself to a hospital immediately," my doctor urged.

I was in a city I'd never visited before, heading to a therapeutic retreat at the beginning of my first-ever sabbatical as a pastor. While traveling, I'd felt off but couldn't put my finger on it. I stopped at a store to buy a blood pressure cuff and called my doctor. We talked through my symptoms, and once I got the highest reading I'd ever seen, she urged me to seek immediate medical attention.

Outstanding professionals provided great care when I arrived at a local emergency room a few minutes later. My blood pressure had fallen, and my BP was normal within an hour. Armed with some medicine in case my blood pressure rose again, I headed to the retreat several hours late.

Over the next few days, I discovered the source of the crazy high blood pressure - anxiety. I'd never admitted, much less named, a lot of pain that had accumulated over several years. All of that unprocessed grief was sitting in my body, and it was like my body knew where I was going and what I was going to be doing there.

I tell that story because I have a hunch you may have known a similar experience. Do you have any unhealed pain from your past? Have you ever thought, "Sure, I have wounds, but I don't want to deal with them, so I'm just going to keep going?"

"What cannot be named cannot be healed." This popular quote reminds us that unhealed wounds often keep us from starting over and moving forward into what God has for us. If you hope to start over in this season, pay attention to the emotions bubbling inside you and the wounds you've been carrying.

Jesus showed this healing was necessary when He intentionally took time to make space for Peter to work through the aftermath of his betrayal of Jesus. Before Jesus' crucifixion, Peter denied knowing Jesus three times and wept bitterly afterward.

After appearing to the apostles, Jesus spent time walking on the beach next to a lake, talking to Peter about what happened and gently restoring him. This healing experience empowered Peter to become a leader in the early church, an influential evangelist who led thousands of people to put their faith in Jesus, and a bold witness in the face of persecution.

I strongly doubt Peter could have done the deeds recorded in the Book of Acts and church history if it hadn't been for his healing conversation with Jesus recorded in John 21. Peter not only needed to grieve his failure, but he also needed to experience the power of Jesus' forgiveness.

If you're in pain today like Peter once was, I encourage you to pay attention to God's presence and open yourself up to His healing power. Psalm 34 tells us that God is near to the broken-hearted, and Matthew 5 tells us that God comforts those who grieve. I know you long to experience God's presence and power. What if the place God wants to meet you is in the middle of your pain?

If you want to experience the new things God is doing, you must watch out for the obstacle of pain from your past. After all, if that pain from your past keeps you stuck in the present, is it something you've put behind you? Unhealed pain in our heart often acts like an infected wound in our body. It puts our future in danger until true healing occurs.

But here's the good news - God meets you in your pain. He can bring healing where you've been hurting. Your past doesn't have to be a prison. It is for freedom that Christ set us free. So don't choose to be enslaved by the very things Jesus died on the cross to conquer.

On day 3 of this plan, we will flip the emotional script and discuss a different obstacle you may face as you start over. It may surprise you!