Don't Let Hurts Hurt You
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"NOW faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Hebrews 11:1

Rejections, defeats, and failures that all of us experience can create enough negative feelings to destroy us if we allow it. Be careful! Often the most painful wounds are not the scars that are outwardly seen, but the hidden wounds deep in the heart.

And, being hidden, they are often the most dangerous.

Setbacks in our lives can take the joy out of living. Our faith is weakened and if we collect enough hurts it will stop us from wanting to "press on."

Look at Job . . . A man of the land of Uz, blameless, upright, one who feared God, yet one who turned from evil. Job had seven sons and three daughters ~ a beautiful family. He was considered the greatest of all men of the East. But . . . He lost everything in the twinkling of an eye. He lost his health, wealth, and family. He hurt. His wife hurt. His friends hurt. He was knocked down BUT NOT OUT! Sure, he lost some of the passionate power to grow and some of his enthusiasm had diminished but he checked his negative thinking and stated, "If I say, I will forget my complaint, I will leave off my heaviness, and comfort myself." In other words, He put on a SMILE!

You might ask yourself, "how could he do that after undergoing so much hurt?" How did Job do it? The same way we can do it ~ through faith. Faith is the only thing that can heal the hurts. Job scraped himself off. It was painful! It hurt! And the scars would remain, but his life was put back together. Strong belief in God was his medicine. His wife, his friends could not help him ~ only God could!

And God can help us too. Allow Him to cast off those personal hurts that cling to you like parasites, sapping the life out of you. HAVE FAITH. TRUST GOD! Faith is a daily necessity in our life. Let us take a good look at our heart and the faith that lies within it. Job did. We can too. And Remember . . . Apart from God we can do nothing . . . without Christ, we are useless! May God Smile Down On You While You're Smiling Up At Him!

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