Scripture
All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.
~I Corinthians 13:12, NLT
Quote
We were created for intimacy–for such a close relationship that we can bear our soul and still feel loved, worthy and protected.
~Charles Stanley
Some men are great preachers but poor writers while others are average preachers but have a gift with the pen. I love to hear Adrian Rogers preach but his books cannot hold my interest. Charles Stanley is no where close to the top of my preacher list but his books are great. Much of Rich Warren’s book, THE PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE came from Stanley. Warren is a plagiarist, among other things. The first book I read of Stanley’s was THE SOURCE OF MY STRENGTH. Charles Stanley’s father died when he was a young boy and his step father never wanted him around. He wanted Charles’ mother but not Charles. When it comes to subjects like self-esteem, insecurity and intimacy: Stanley speaks with profound insight.
Rule number one: we all have insecurities. No human is perfectly secure and this goes back to the garden and Adam’s sin. Insecurity is a part of the curse. This natural insecurity can be intensified and exaggerated by any form of rejection. This is one reason why parents are so important to a child: they give the child the emotional support needed for healthy growth. Honestly, I don’t think I ever felt that either of my parents didn’t want me. Mother’s seem to be more consistent than fathers when it comes to reassuring the child that they are loved unconditionally.
Now for part two: I am convinced that Stanley is right, we have a deep need for intimacy. We want to be known by someone whom we trust; someone who loves us more than life itself and naturally, we look for this intimacy among men or should I say, human relationships. It is possible that once a child reaches maturity, they may very well be intimate with one or both parents. My daddy and I didn’t really talk to each other until I was in my 30’s. When he began opening up to me two things happened: first, I was shocked at his honestly and second, it helped me to understand his past. My daddy never got to live his dream. He spent most of his life providing for seven kids. I thought he loved finishing concrete but he told me different. When you think about, why would anyone love to finish concrete.
There is a third thing you must understand: although the desire and need of every human is intimacy, those who have been deeply scarred emotionally resist all forms of intimacy. They have been hurt deeply by someone they trusted and their natural response is to protect themselves. They do this by repression. Instead of talking about their pain, they bottle it up; put it under lock and key. Then they hang a sign on their heart that says, “no trespassing.” No matter who you are or what your relationship to this person is: you are not going to get in and the harder you try, the more frustrated you will become.
So what is the answer? Would you like to guess? It starts with a J….Jesus is the answer. Everyone who has a mind to can have an intimate relationship with Jesus. He knows you inside out. He knows everything you have done. He knows everything that others have done to you and he loves you anyway. If you were taken advantage of while you were a child; you are probably don’t want to talk about it. The shame you feel is overwhelming. You may even repress it to the point that it is at if it never happened. The good news is: there isn’t anything you can tell Jesus about yourself that He doesn’t already know. If you let Him, Jesus will become your best friend. Husbands, you can try as hard as you want but you cannot meet all your wife’s needs and she can’t meet all of your needs. There is a J shaped void in every heart and only Jesus can fill it. We can love them the way Christ loves the church: selflessly, sacrificially and sanctifyingly but we cannot understand them on Jesus level. Plus we cannot free them from sin and shame. Only Jesus can!
I watch a movie about Mary Magdalene yesterday and according to the movie version, Mary had known more than one man but still felt a huge void. Her deepest desire was to be known and loved unconditionally. She was introduced to Jesus and He filled the void.
I had a lot on my mind this morning, like that is an excuse for a 17 year old who doesn’t remember to take his BP meds half the time, and I slap dab forgot to post the blog. Since I have an entire page of unposted blogs, I decided to post it late.
GOOD NEWS/BAD NEWS: I fear, after what we have learned the last two days with the Chloe Bug being in HH for women and children, that we are far from knowing the truth about the CCP virus. I thought Covid-19 and coronavirus was the same thing but they are not. Chloe Bug had Covid-19 and we didn’t know it and now she has the coronavirus. The good news for us is it could have been worse: they thought for awhile that it might be Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome {MIS-C}. If I understand correctly and I may not, this is a viral infection that children are getting after Covid and it is not good. I want you to do your own research. What bothers me is the bologna they have feed us and the truth they are withholding.
PRAYER REQUEST: Again, I hope I have the facts right–Clara Miller is in Children’s {B’Ham} with complications and I think they are very serious. I want everyone reading this to stop and prayer for Shohn {Mother} and Clara. They have been on my heart all day. Clara suffers from Spinal bifida. In all my years of ministry, I have never worked with anyone like Shohn. I have never heard her complain and her patience seems inexhaustible. She has helped so many kids in the Danville area and she need us now–we can’t let her down. Pray for God’s grace to be greater than her need. Pray for Mrs. Clara–that every doubt, every fearful thought would be banished from her mind.