Margie looked very worried when her friend, Doreen, didn’t show up for the lunch date they had planned. It was at their favorite Mexican spot, and Doreen was late. She’s never late. Margie picked up her phone and looked at it one more time. While still in her hand, a text came through. Doreen wasn’t going to make it, and Margie so hoped that she would. They had been best friends since college and bridesmaids at each other’s weddings. Their kids grew up together, and their friendship had weathered many storms. Margie thought they knew everything about each other, but Doreen wasn’t behaving like herself. She had started to drink more than a casual glass of wine here and there. One of their tennis buddies saw her stumbling out of a package store one night. Margie didn’t want to believe it and was on a mission that day to prove everyone wrong.
Extreme heartache and pain can cause us to change in ways we could never imagine. The betrayal alone can send shock waves that reverberate through our lives for a very long time. We try a hundred different techniques to get rid of the pain. We listen to those who tell us that the answer is loving ourselves more, so we do a whole bunch of things to pamper our bodies. Some of us try to stay as busy as possible with chores or other activities so that they don’t have to think about how much it hurts.
When a marriage ends, it’s not unusual to feel that no matter what you do, no medicine can travel deep enough within to touch the pain you’ve experienced. The internal sensation of being perpetually shattered can feel as though we’re encountering the shock of loss daily. Our bodies and emotions are telling us that trauma has occurred. It’s important that we acknowledge this message, but do so without keeping that trauma locked within our physical beings.
God tells us in Hosea 4:6(NLT), “My people are being destroyed because they don’t know me.” Our Father is making it clear that a lack of knowledge about Him, His love, Will, grace, sovereignty, and power, can be very destructive to our existences. We are placed on this earth for the purpose of increasing our knowledge about God and growing in our relationship with Him through the Lord Jesus Christ. He tells us in Ephesians 1:11(NLT), “Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan.” God dearly loves each of us. In Ephesians 2:10, He tells us that we are His masterpiece, and He created us brand new in Christ. He has placed His Holy Spirit inside us so we can do all the good things that He’s planned for our lives. His Will is that we are happy and blessed continually, and He’s made a way through Christ for this to happen. There are no words to define how monumentally important it is that we understand this truth and allow it to sink deep in our minds and hearts.
The pain of divorce can cut deep, and some of us are tempted to use substances and other things to take it away, but the encouragement of Psalm 34:18(NLT) tells us, “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.” God is the Healer of broken hearts. Through Him, we are capable of triumphing over our pain, but our doubt in God’s love, Will, grace, sovereignty, and power will trap us. Doubt will keep our faith from increasing. When we experience tremendous heartbreak in this condition, doubt and unbelief will hold our pain captive. Our renewed and unwavering faith in God will indeed set it free.
1Peter 2:22(NLT) teaches us that when our precious and powerful Lord and Savior walked upon this earth, “22 He never sinned, nor ever deceived anyone.” Jesus Christ understands our pain because, when he walked this earth, he was often treated horribly by the very people he came to save. 1Peter 2:23-24(NLT) says, “23 He did not retaliate when he was insulted, nor threaten revenge when he suffered. He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly. 24 He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.” He gave his life on the cross so that we would not have to suffer the way that he did. He wants us to have faith in the victory that God sent him to the earth to win for us all.
It isn’t God’s Will for us to suffer or to be trapped by the pain of a broken heart. We can be confident that He made a way through Jesus Christ for our complete and total healing, and if we renew our minds to believe and trust the love and healing of God, He will do a great work in our hearts. Confidence in Him will always and forever be the answer for every issue of life.
When we’re hurting, we’re desperate for relief, but only the Lord can cure what ails us. 1John 5:4(NLT) declares, “For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith.” Divorce is challenging, but it isn’t too hard for God, and we can’t allow it to diminish our faith in Him. People sometimes leave, but our Heavenly Father never will. We must seek God with all that we are by reading encouraging and inspiring scriptures, meditating on them and praying often to our Heavenly Father in the powerful name of Jesus Christ. This is the way to build our faith in Him as we lean completely and totally on His healing power and strength. ■
Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
“The Pain of Divorce” written by Fran Mack. Edits by Kim Times and K. Stephens for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2024. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.