You Made It

It is the day after Thanksgiving and a large amount of people have already been Black Friday shopping since early this morning. Actually, with technology today, Black Friday is more like most of November, ramps up around Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, and they try to keep you spending until the Super Bowl.

What does this have to do with divorce and you making it?

Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, Valentine’s Day, Anniversaries, and many other big days are the hardest when you have lost someone or your marriage. Reminders of kids opening presents early in the morning, the smell of a dozen different foods being enjoyed with family, and that special someone being with you through it all…..but all is really not all.

You look at the important days like graduation, the loss of a first tooth, and a new job only to experience these without the one you planned to have by your side. It is hard, and it sucks to put it mildly.

BUT….You made it!!!

It is a new day and the sun came up this morning. You have breath in your lungs and you are on the right side of the grass. God’s mercies are new every morning according to Lamentations 3, but there is so much more to this passage of scripture.

The Book of Lamentations is exactly what it says; a book lamenting to God about the nation of Israel and it’s suffering. Jerusalem has been destroyed by Babylon. Things are not the same. The wonderful past is now a painful present. If you want to watch a powerful video describing the Book of Lamentations, here is a link to a short video. It will open your eyes. Take the time to watch the video and you may relate to our ancestors much more than you realize.

The chapter has only 3 positive verses, ones that describe the goodness of God.

Lamentations 3:22-24

22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
    his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
    “therefore I will hope in him.”

You made it this far because of God’s love, mercy, and faithfulness. Does it still hurt? Yes. Does it change the situation? No. Does it mean anything will change today? That is up to you.

When you allow God to be your portion, He gives you a hope that you will only understand with the passage of time. You will be able to look back and say, “God got me through it. I made it!!”

Did you make it to the end? Not yet, but God will get you there.

If you are struggling today, take a few minutes right now and just lament to God. Tell Him how you feel. Tell Him what hurts. Tell Him what you want to change. Just talk to God. He wants to hear from you. He wants to have a real conversation, not just a list of prayers you say as you are running out the door to whatever you have to do.

People talk about self-care. I prefer God-care, because God created you and knows you way better than you or your bestie knows you. Give Him a little time to do a real work on your heart. Don’t settle for self-care, reach for God-care.

Part of healing is opening up the wound, cleaning it out, and providing an opportunity for it to heal.

Lament to the One who gives love, mercy, and faithfulness new every day.

You made it to today. You will make it to tomorrow. Have hope in Him.

Be blessed!!

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Any purchase or donation would be a huge blessing. Much love!!

The Bridge

So many cliches about bridges. Here comes another one.

I hope not. I pray that our few moments together can speak something different about you, your present situation, and what is next.

I am going to reference a bridge, but I believe God has something for you that you may not have considered before today.

It is said that a bridge carries you from your past to your future. What if it is created to carry you from your present to your destiny instead? Instead of a bridge over troubled water, could it be a bridge over the unknown?

I challenge you to envision the bridge that will carry you and your dreams to God’s plan for you.

Anyone who has encountered the pain of divorce knows that dreams of a life-long love with the spouse of your youth was to be a dream realized through a lifetime of sharing and enjoying each other. You had desires and plans to grow old together while enjoying the fruits of your labor and the family you created through your marriage. Now it is gone.

There are many kinds of bridges. Let’s take a looks at a few.

The quickest and simplest bridge is actually what people would call a tightrope. It is a single piece of material that can literally be thrown over to the other side. I could preach a whole message on the person who is on the other side telling you this is a good idea. Let’s just not go down that rabbit trail.

You see a tight piece of material that looks like it is connected securely to your destiny. I guess the next thing to do is walk across, right? What is stopping you?

Some people think this should be the way across the great divide to their destiny; simple, easy, and fast. Yes, it can be unsafe and less than secure, but let’s move out of the pain of our present.

I don’t recommend this. Being in your present doesn’t mean you want or desire to be there.

Your present is only where you are at this moment in time. You get to choose how you exist there as you prepare to move forward.

Now a rope bridge that has some rickety wooden planks for steps looks safer and still a relatively quick way across to the other side. To each his/her own.

Crossing a bridge usually entails some time and effort. I just prefer not swinging in the wind, trusting those old pieces of wood to hold my weight long enough to make another step without splitting in two pieces causing me to grab on for dear life.

Some have the patience and desire to build a wood suspension bridge, put together with wood and nails. This kind of bridge take longer to build, but if it is not created with the correct angles and secure materials, it may not allow a truly secure means of crossing. It can be done, but is it the safest and strongest way across?

I am afraid of heights, and sometimes driving over a bridge I may get a little uneasy if it is windy and I am stuck in the lane next to the edge driving 65 mph between a dump truck and a slower RV praying he gets to the top.

The strongest, safest, and easiest way to cross the depths of despair and disappointment to reach the destiny God has for you is to realize that it takes time to create the bridge of healing.

It takes pilons driven into a solid foundation. It takes materials of strength, forged from steel that will not buckle under the weight of what God has you to carry across this great expanse. It takes time to design, engineer, supply, and construct a masterpiece to carry you to your God-given destiny.

The bridge that God has for you is a bridge not made with human hands, but crafted by an Almighty God who loves and cares for you.

You bring your belief, your faith, and your obedience and God will drive those pilons of relationship deep into His created earth.

He already has the design ready to go. He is looking for your faith to step out with Him into laying the beams of faith, one after another, over the foggy clouds of fear you may have. He is waiting for you to supply the obedience of following His plan and timing to create a safe crossing into your destiny.

Don’t try to cut corners and try to jump the divide like Evil Knievel. It will only result in more pain and suffering. You may not be in the present place you are now, but you will usually find yourself much worse off than where you are now.

My heart goes out to those who attempted the quick and easy way to healing. The vast majority would do it differently, if they are being honest.

The strength, security, and ease of crossing the bridge built God’s way is more than just a way to leave your present. It is a means of bringing the extremely valuable gifts, talents, and treasures you possess with you into His destiny for you. These are meant to come with you.

This bridge is not created to carry your baggage. Leave it behind. You have to much good to carry. You do not have the space or the need for it.

You also need to bring the right people with you on your journey. God will provide others that have His heart and desire to support you as you build this bridge with Him. You didn’t think God would let you and Him build it alone, did you? God wants loving, supportive people to build this bridge to your healing so that you have someone to celebrate with on the other side.

What kind of bridge are you building? Whose plans are you using? Who is on the other end helping you?

Take the time to build with God. A bridge created with belief, faith, and obedience will provide you the way to the other side, from your present to your destiny; God’s destiny for you.

Be Blessed!!

Have you listened to the Divorce to Healing Podcast? Check it out HERE !!!

YouVersion Bible App Reading Plans:
(over 180,000 downloads to date)
31 Days: http://bit.ly/2DNy6E6
7 Days: http://bit.ly/2DTHQwD

If you would like to support this ministry, feel free to purchase a copy of my book or donate below:

Book: http://amzn.to/2ctwjHp

Paypal: http://PayPal.Me/brentpapineau3

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