Shofar Stellenbosch | Our FatherSample

Devotional: The Desire of Our Father to Heal, Restore and Deliver Do you think Jesus can identify with all our needs? (Hebrews 4:15-16). Some of the things Jesus suffered: * His birth was questioned. * He was rejected by men. * He was born in poverty. * His race was oppressed. * His father died when He was young. * He was called illegitimate. * He was abandoned in death. * He was treated unfairly. * He was misunderstood. * He did not have an attractive physical appearance. * His siblings didn’t respect Him. * He suffered physically on the Cross. Our emotional insecurities will cause us to be independent of God and others and it will make us susceptible to pride. We should not be dominated by our fears and insecurities. God wants us to be free from our pain and He wants to heal our wounds. God revealed himself as Jehovah Rapha or Yahweh Rapha in the Old Testament (Exodus 15:26), which means the Lord our Healer. We should realize that God is a perfect Father. He also said that He is the “balm of Gilead”. This was expensive, fragrant oil, used on wounds and its healing qualities worked from the inside out. God is a gentle healer. God also revealed Himself as Jehovah Sabaoth, which means God is our deliverer (1 Samuel 17:45). Looking back, which of the following do you think your parents communicated to you? I don’t have time for you, you are not special, I think you are stupid, you are a nuisance, I don’t actually want you, you must perform to earn our love, don’t cry or show feelings. Here are a few steps to follow to help deal with past hurts: * Realize you are not the only one who has suffered – we live in a broken world. It is important not to fall into self-pity or to be self-centred. * Be honest with God about: Your need for healing Your past hurts and pain Your insecurities and weaknesses Your inability to heal yourself * Forgiveness: forgive others and yourself, read Matthew 18 * Confession and repentance (James 5:16) * Renewing your mind, know what God feels about you and what His promises are (Romans 12:2) * Worship God * Look unto God and focus on who He is. * Spend time in His presence and learn to enjoy Him. * Come to Him with thanksgiving and believe He is pleased with you. Testimony: I grew up with a heavy feeling of rejection and developed a fear of being rejected by others. This caused me to look in different places for acceptance and love. I became very performance orientated as I did everything to be the best and to be acknowledged by other people. I will never forget how God started showing me how much He loves me. A mother asked me to hold her baby and as I held the child, the Lord told me that He wants to hold me in exactly the same way. He said that He would care for me and never leave me as long as I will trust Him. I realized how dependent and vulnerable this child was.