The pain of a sister going through the devastation of divorce reminded me of where I used to be. Hearing her anguish hurt my heart, but also provided encouragement because I was able to see where I was and where I am today. Friends, the wretched pain does not last forever. There is hope. With God’s help and guidance I am in a better place than I could have ever imagined. I want to share with you the letter I wrote her and hope you too will be encouraged.
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I have been praying for you. I know exactly how you feel and wanted to offer you words of encouragement. The verses below really helped me in a time where everything seemed hopeless.
“Do not be afraid; you will not be put
to shame. Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated. You will forget the
shame of your youth and remember no more the reproach of your widowhood. For
your Maker is your husband— the Lord
Almighty is his name—
the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth. The Lord will call you back as if you were a wife deserted and distressed in spirit—a wife who married young, only to be rejected,” says your God. “For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. In a surge of anger I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord your Redeemer. “To me this is like the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So now I have sworn not to be angry with you, never to rebuke you again. Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you. “Afflicted city, lashed by storms and not comforted, I will rebuild you with stones of turquoise, your foundations with lapis lazuli. I will make your battlements of rubies, your gates of sparkling jewels, and all your walls of precious stones. All your children will be taught by the Lord, and great will be their peace. In righteousness you will be established: Tyranny will be far from you; you will have nothing to fear. Terror will be far removed; it will not come near you. If anyone does attack you, it will not be my doing; whoever attacks you will surrender to you. “See, it is I who created the blacksmith who fans the coals into flame and forges a weapon fit for its work. And it is I who have created the destroyer to wreak havoc; no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and this is their vindication from me,” declares the Lord” (Isaiah 54: 4-17 NIV emphasis added).
the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth. The Lord will call you back as if you were a wife deserted and distressed in spirit—a wife who married young, only to be rejected,” says your God. “For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. In a surge of anger I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord your Redeemer. “To me this is like the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So now I have sworn not to be angry with you, never to rebuke you again. Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you. “Afflicted city, lashed by storms and not comforted, I will rebuild you with stones of turquoise, your foundations with lapis lazuli. I will make your battlements of rubies, your gates of sparkling jewels, and all your walls of precious stones. All your children will be taught by the Lord, and great will be their peace. In righteousness you will be established: Tyranny will be far from you; you will have nothing to fear. Terror will be far removed; it will not come near you. If anyone does attack you, it will not be my doing; whoever attacks you will surrender to you. “See, it is I who created the blacksmith who fans the coals into flame and forges a weapon fit for its work. And it is I who have created the destroyer to wreak havoc; no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and this is their vindication from me,” declares the Lord” (Isaiah 54: 4-17 NIV emphasis added).
The above
Scripture is one I have held close to my heart. I held that pain. Just like
you, I was that young bride abandoned by her husband. There were times I felt
abandoned by God; times when everything around me was broken and I felt alone.
I was living in shame and felt disgraced. It was daunting and overwhelming.
There were times I believed the lie that I was now “used goods.” I read the
verses above and they spoke directly to me and reminded me that God knew my
pain. He understood the grief that covered me. His eye was on me and He would
rebuild the broken ruins of my life. He promised to protect me, to teach my
children and to give us peace. At a time when there was no stability, this
promise gave me great comfort. In time I would have stability and that gave me
hope.
I was that storm battered city, troubled
and desolate. When I looked at my situation through my human, finite
understanding I saw hopelessness, desolation and despair. As I meditated on the
Word of God I realized that because I had been through a traumatic event there
would be a process to heal and rebuild.
Everything that lay crumbled at my feet would not be fixed overnight.
Just like you, I was there, and I can tell you there is hope. It’s not the end
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