Victim to Victory

Today's post is one of significant personal battle.  It's easy to encourage others to forgive and not hold onto hurts.  But when it happened to me, of such deep and overwhelming hurt, I had to go on a journey with GOD where I couldn't do anything for myself.  I relied on Him completely and worshipped Him in the heart of my pain; in the middle of being a victim GOD was my rock and my salvation.  He was my song.  Or so I thought.

The truth was that He was 'most of' my song.  Deep inside my heart was a hardened spot where I'd been hurt.  I thought it was small enough to be left alone, but it was not.

GOD spoke to me very profoundly and challenged me with this scripture from Jesus in Matthew 5:

"But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you," (v44)

He said to me that until I can pray for the people that I'd shut myself off from, I will always be a victim to the way that they treated me.  Yes, a victim.  And then I remembered these words... for we are more than conquerors through Him who loves us. (Rom 8:37)

Conquerors live in victory - not as victims.  Victors walk around proud of who they are and confident that they can handle anything that gets thrown at them.  Victors stand up after being knocked down, they dust themselves off and try again.  That's what makes them victors.  The victim stays lying down in order to protect themselves from falling down.  You see, if you're down, you can't really fall any further. But if you get up, you can fall down again.

I believe that this is where GOD wants us to live; in VICTORY!  He wants us to be vulnerable to falling and trust that He will be there if we do.  He may stop us from falling, or He may decide to catch us - that's His decision.  I know that I'd rather worship in the hands of my Saviour than worship from the dust of the miry clay.

Let me finish with this:
"But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. ” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.  That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

As Paul wrote this in his second letter to the Corinth church (12:9-10), I believe that he was encouraging the Church to become a place of victory and not just a gathering of victims.  We all have issues and serious hurts that we believe we need to hold onto in order to avoid being hurt again.  But life is not about avoiding getting hurt, it's about allowing GOD's strength and power to be made perfect in that hurt!  It's about accepting that we live under Grace.

Jesus' work on the cross is where we gain our victory.  His completion of the law and fulfillment of the promise of GOD is the Grace that is sufficient for our sufferings.

May I encourage you today to take the journey with GOD; the journey from victim to victory!