Are you feeling bruised?

Yesterday I did something I do on a regular basis.

I include this activity in my time management each week (whatever "time management" means..LOL).

And yesterday was no exception...

I took a walk.

I do that at least 3 times per week, not because I believe it is good for me, but because I get "wellness" points that help me with health care coverage.

Now, before you jump into your judgment mode, let me say, if it benefited you, you'd probably consider putting it in your schedule as well.

Yesterday an occurrence that has been prevalent recently happened again. Pain down my right leg. Not just pain, but NERVE PAIN. Sciatic nerve pain. Can you say OUCH with me.

This morning as I sit here typing, my right lower back is lightly throbbing and it hurts down my leg and into my knee. For those of you who have had this experience, you know the wonder (sarcasm) of this condition.

This morning the pain reminded me of a thought from this weeks morning reading time. Maybe, just maybe, the words of this book will encourage your heart this morning...

"Is there anything more frail than a bruised reed? Look at the bruised reed at the water's edge. A once slender and tall stalk of sturdy river grass. It is now bowed and bent.

Are you a bruised reed?

Was it long ago that you stood so tall, so proud?

Then something happened...

...by harsh words...

...by a friend's anger...

...by a spouses betrayal...

The bruised reed . . . Society knows what to do with you. . . .

The world will break you off; the world will snuff you out.

But the artist of Scripture proclaims that God won't. Under God's direction the prophet writes "A bruised reed He will not break..." * then by the Spirit's leading he pens, "or put out a flickering candle" ** .

Painted on canvas after canvas is the tender touch of a Creator who has a special place for the bruised and weary of the world.

A God who is the friend of the wounded heart." (From "He Still Moves Stones" by Max Lucado)

You may not feel like this is true.

Your heart is broken, your will is almost gone, your desires are undesirable.

And you wonder. Like me. Is this it. Am I finished?

I've been there.

It's a tough place to be.

A tough place to get out of.

But...

You can...

Why?

God sent his Son to become flesh so he could experience our plight. Jesus knows the depth of your struggle because he lived in this world too.

God knew that the cross was not the end of the story. Jesus would rise from that day of death to bring hope. Sometimes one event can seem overwhelming. It looks like the end of your story. but there is more to be written.

God loves you.

HE... CARES...

Don't allow your emotions to totally take you out of this truth.

Lean into God. Trust him with your emotions.

I know he allows these times of struggle, he does this to shape our faith. Today you may not want to be shaped.

I'm OK with that.

He's (God) OK with that.

When I want to quit walking because the pain in my back is so distracting, I understand that if I stop, it will allow the progress of my walking to be lost.

Then, the result I was walking for, slowly fades and the pain grows.

It hurts to move, but if I don't move I won't move.

Or....

Maybe the pain now reminds me to stay moving and even in the pain, I'll be able to stay mobile.

I have learned this, if I stop walking the pain will increase. That could potentially diminish or even take away my ability to move.

Dear friend, A bruised reed He will not break...

It's OK to struggle with doubt. I do. Thirty-four years of ministry, and I am still learning. I expect I will be learning till the day I die.

Need someone to tell? A real person?

Tell another believer the truth, you want to quit.

But don't quit.

Don't have a flesh and blood person to go to?

E-mail me.

I'll be glad to pray and listen if that's what you need.

But...

Know... "A bruised reed He will not break..." * "or put out a flickering candle" ** .

Praying, even as I type, that God will help you in ways I don't even know to pray for.

Till next time...