The Deepening Experience: You Are the Beloved Shembull

Trinity to the Rescue

When Eden fell, Heaven mounted a search and rescue mission. Father surprised the serpent with His announcement that One was coming, a seed of Eve, who would crush the serpent’s head and end his reign of terror (Genesis 3:15). This is the knight in shining armor, the one who rides in on a white horse to rescue His Beloved and vanquish her foe. Dramatic? Yes! This is a full-scale adventure story, complete with a valiant and lovesick hero who will move heaven and earth to find you.

Dear one, this is the good news. Jesus came to breathe life into your heart. The Holy Spirit comes even now to heal your wounds.

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. (Psalm 147:3, NIV)

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy. (Psalm 103:2-4, ESV)

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners … to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. (Isaiah 61: 1-3, NIV)

But for God to heal us, we must first acknowledge and name our wounds – feeling the pain, grieving what happened to us, and embracing the story of what has happened to us. And then we bring all of that to Jesus. We ask them – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – into our story and find that God is brokenhearted for us, with us. And His tenderness and kindness, His compassion and wisdom meet us in those desert places and bring us back to life again.

In all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and mercy he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them. (Isaiah 53: 9, NIV)

The path of healing for our hearts usually involves a combination of things that might include the wise counsel of professional healers, the solace of sweet companionship that we find in friendships and family, and the direct ministry of the Spirit of God who comforts us in our woes and brings us to life again. No matter which of these are part of your story, they all have the theme of healing through relationships. Because our deepest heart wounds come from people, it is also through redemptive relationships that healing will flow. And that, too, is part of our restoration - that God heals our hearts in a way that leaves us open to love and intimacy and community.

Jesus, come, into our broken places, into the desolation of our hearts. Spirit of Life, breathe on us again. Spirit of Comfort, hold us tight against your heartbeat and lead us into Your safe spaces. Arrange for our hearts whatever Your Wisdom knows we need to be whole again. We trust You know the way to life and that You will lead us there.