The premise of Shine TYC is to help you get comfortable with who you are and where you've been. The mission is to help you understand that regardless of your trials and tragedies, your flaws and failures, God can do amazing things with your life.
You're broken. We're all broken. Some people are shattered. Some are crushed. Some, like me, are made of jagged pieces that have been put back together by God like a glued vase. You'll never be in one piece while you're alive. There will always be a broken space between your spirit and your body. It doesn't matter how many broken pieces you're made of, when God glues you back to wholeness, you can shine His light through your cracks.
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Broken for Good
January 24, 2020
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Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time He said, "My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.
2 Corinthians 12:8-9 (NLT)
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Lord God, help us come to terms with our brokenness. Let your power show through our weakness. Let your light shine through our cracks. Amen!
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I was 26 years old when everything changed. I woke up one morning, put my feet on the floor, and realized that I was never going be a woman who wasn't abused as a little girl. This was it. This was my story. Until then, I'd been trying to change my story and that's why I kept failing. From that day forward, I accepted that I would always be the woman who was abused as a child. But what else would I become? I was no longer looking to be something different. I was determined to become something more.
Our focus this week is 2 Corinthians 12:1-10, Paul's thorn. Take a minute to read it now if you can.
This wasn't an actual thorn and if you google it, you'll find hundreds of speculations as to what it was. It's not necessary to to know what the "thorn" was. It may have been a physical ailment, a sinful desire, people in opposition to him, or like many of us, he may have been haunted by his past. What's important to understand is that Paul, like me, and maybe like you, had something negative in his life that he couldn't shake.
So what can we learn from Paul and his thorn?
You can't make it disappear. Paul asked God three times to remove the thorn. Jesus asked God three times in the Garden of Gethsemane not to go to the cross if he didn't have to go. I asked God for 23 years to rid me of my memories. His answer was always the same. "My grace is sufficient."
God doesn't always remove our trials, temptations, and unpleasant situations. Sometimes, he just gives us the strength to keep stepping with the thorn.
Your past can't block your purpose. In Acts 9, Paul (then named Saul) was on his way to Damascus to persecute Christians. He had already been witness to the killing of Stephen. On the road to Damascus he met Jesus and realized he was wrong. He went on to become the dude who wrote nearly half of the New Testament.
Nothing that happened before you met Jesus can stop you from being who God wants you to be. Period. Let that sink in.
You can have issues and success. Paul wrote 13 of the 27 books in the New Testament and there is some debate as to whether or not he also wrote Hebrews. As a prolific figure in the early church, he was highly motivated to serve God. With all that notoriety, Paul still had issues. Success in your life won't make your "stuff" disappear. You think more money, more fame, or a better job will change your story. It will not.
Part of my anger as a young adult was that I felt like God owned me a pain-free adulthood since I had been abused as a child. I kept thinking that I'd get to a place when it would all be rainbows and butterflies. Nope. In John 16:33 Jesus said, "Here on earth, you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart because I have overcome the world." This is it, people. This is life.
You're broken for good. Satan put that thorn on Paul to torment him just like that ol' devil came for me at 3 years old. God used Paul's thorn to make him a stronger servant of the Lord. He did the same for me. He's using your thorns, too. Remember Romans 8:28? Everything works for our good when we belong to Jesus. If you are Christian, you don't need to worry about the trials of life taking you out. It may feel that way. It may even look that way at certain points, BUT GOD is using it all for your good.
The devil never wins. He already lost when Jesus went to the cross and he's hoping you don't know that. But I'm telling you...You will come out of this with more strength and more faith than you knew you had.
I've had a thorn in my side for almost 45 years. Before I could read or ride a bike, I was crippled by fear, confusion, and despair. My earliest memories are tragic and my brain is conditioned to "go there." But God's grace is sufficient and the Bible has given me sound strategies to be victorious with this thorn. #readyourbible
Because of the damage to my body, doctors said I couldn't have children. I have two. My lack of emotional stamina made it impossible to sustain a healthy relationship. I've been with my husband for 22 years. I have suffered and been in some of the darkest, thorniest places a person can go and I'm here to tell the story.
God's power works best in your weakness. God's grace is sufficient for your life. Yes, you are broken, but you're broken for good. So, pray, read your Bible and let the light shine through your cracks.
What is your thorn? Have you accepted God's grace to help you deal with it or are you trying to fight it on your own? Ask God to let his power flow through you. Ask Him to give you peace with your story.
Book a Coaching session with me. Sessions are conducted by phone and/or video conference for your convenience. Financial assistance is available.
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