I didn’t know her, but the vulnerable thoughts she’d penned pierced my heart.
I realized where I was stuck. I was stuck in jealousy–wanting the childhood she had. Wanting. Wishing. But, not having.
She spoke of jealousy, but what I heard in those words? Grief. Yearning. Broken-hearted longing. If I had to guess? This woman, like so many, grew up in dysfunction.
She may have been raised in a home with an empty pantry and only harsh, angry words to nourish a girl’s hungry soul. Hers may have been the home other children politely refused to visit because they’d heard the shouting and cursing seeping from the walls in the dark of the night. Or, she might have been the child shivering beneath the covers because the heating bill had been neglected in favor of another bottle of her stepfather’s favorite whiskey.
If that is part of your story? I. Am. Sorry.
Something is terribly broken in a world where children grow up with hungry stomachs and hungrier hearts.
You can do something different, dear one.
And if we are honest, we all might admit the truth…
Even the best families are dysfunctional. While not everyone experienced a childhood without a father or cleaned up after an addicted parent, we all know this one thing.
Our. Parents. Were. Not. Perfect.
And, of course, neither are we.
[bcc tweet=”So how do dysfunctional, messed-up people break the chains of familial bondage? Is it even possible to rid ourselves of unwanted habits that have hitched a ride from one generation to the next?
Yes, but not our own power. Instead, we can turn to the one who is All-Powerful.”]
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners…(Isaiah 61:1)
But to begin moving in that direction? We need to recognize the hurts and habits that moved into our marriages and families uninvited. Call them out. Denounce their destructiveness and invite the Holy Spirit into the walls of our homes and hearts.
Unabated sarcasm? Angry outbursts? Shutting down? Shutting out? Whatever the sin. Name it, friend, and He will begin to unfasten the chains.
Invite His correction. Accept His instruction. Trust His direction.
[bbctt tweet=”There isn’t a stronghold that can stand when we invite the Helper into our sin-created, self-mandated cage. The walls of resistance are shaken, doors burst open and we step into the light of freedom the moment we admit our weakness.”]
There may be times we wander into the dark den that once held us captive, but we don’t belong there. Remember,[bbctt tweet=”the day we trusted Jesus we were set free from bondage”]. The door stands open. Let’s trust Him enough to step across the threshold.
In His love and grace,
Tammy
I love the reminder that it’s not by our own strength we live in freedom. If we start thinking it’s by our own strength, we’ll miss out on truly living in the freedom only Christ offers. Great article! Visiting from #TuneInThursday. 🙂
Hi Emily. Thanks for stopping by! May we trust Him for the freedom He has pronounced over us. Have a wonderful day!
Thank you for sharing encouragement here.
There is someone I care deeply about who is stuck in the bondage of his childhood. He has readily admitted that he knows it was terrible, but he “won’t deal with it”. I’m guessing because it is too painful. The sad thing is, it effects so much of how he operates.
Praying he finds His hope and freedom from the brokeness of his childhood in our Heavenly Father.
Hi Karen. It must be painful for you to see this dear one hurting. It can be difficult to step into the woundedness of a broken childhood and it may happen in baby steps. May I pray for you and this person for whom you care? Father, you know what it is to suffer abuse and to watch the person closest to heart struggle through the grief and all of the feelings and fears associated with such betrayal. Would you comfort Karen, Lord. Give her words to encourage and an ear to listen. Protect her heart as she ministers to this dear one and tenderly begin to heal those raw, aching places in this dear one’s spirit, soul and mind. In Jesus name, Amen.
Wow, Tammy, this is powerful! Praise God, He is more than willing to walk, and sometimes crawl, the path of parenthood with us. And His most powerful tools in the journey? To me, grace and forgiveness.
His mercy and grace are such gifts in the up’s and down’s of parenting! Blessings, Tammy
Sadly this is far too many children’s experience…parenting is a responsibility that none should take lightly & I am so glad that Jesus walked alongside us as we parented…no none of us perfect…but our parent in heaven is, God the Father…praise Him!
You’re most welcome to join me in a cup of inspiration anytime!
Jennifer
Hi Jennifer. I am grateful for His example! Blessings, Tammy
I love the words of Isaiah 61:1 and the message that Jesus sets us free. Thanks for the reminder.
I am so thankful that Jesus is more than enough to conquer our trauma and pain. He is the Healer and the Redeemer! Thanks for sharing your post on Grace & Truth.