It’s Never Too Late: Finding Family Wholeness (part 1)
Shoutout - Photo by Ryan Hutton on Unsplash
Welcome to part 1 of my new short series- It’s Never Too Late : Finding Family Wholeness
Whether we’re facing a single relationship in crisis or carrying the weight of years of family problems, challenges, and brokenness, it is never too late for God to enter our lives to change and transform them. Centuries ago, God Himself challenged Abraham and Sarah's doubts by asking a question that still speaks directly to our families today:
Is anything too difficult or wonderful for the Lord?
Genesis 18:14 NLT & NRSV
Our focus shouldn’t be “Is it too late for my family relationships?” Our focus should be- “Is this too difficult or wonderful for the Lord?”
Throughout the Bible, God works with surrendered people, to work out the impossible, in His time and in His ways. He is the Waymaker, Miracle Worker, Great Reconciler and Restorer of all things.
When faced with family brokenness, we don't have to be paralyzed by uncertainty. Instead of throwing up my hands in frustration, I lift them up to my Father in surrender: “Lord, I give this all to You. Look at this brokenness, this strained and disconnected relationship. Help! I am turning it over to You, trusting that You will give me the wisdom to know when to act and when to remain still.”
Instead of giving up on the relationship, Surrender up to God.
Surrender is acknowledging that I’m limited and don’t/can’t see the big picture like our good Father does.
Only the Master Designer of families can see the beginning from the end and understand every complicated heart and layered dynamic that is in a marriage or a family.
First, I re-surrender my ideal of a fairytale family. (I love happily-ever-after scenerios but only God will provide our happily ever after!)
I try to surrender my hurt and pain. (that’s not easy and might take some time)
I surrender my pride, my opinions and the need to be right. (this one hurts)
I surrender my best ideas on how to “fix” this problem.
I surrender the “outcome” of how God might choose to heal this brokenness. (the outcome may not be fast or easy or even look the way I thought it would)
I surrender the timing. (this is the most difficult of all for me- I want everything fixed “yesterday”)
Surrendering to God is not giving up, it’s giving the problem over to the One who can heal.
Below is a daily prayer (hourly sometimes for me) that helps me guard my thoughts and calm my anxiety when things seem out of control.
Bethany and I listen to the ONE MINUTE PAUSE devotional app by John Eldredge. It has revolutionized the way I pray. I literally feel the stress leave my body when I hear John begin to speak in his soothing, fatherly voice.
"Jesus, I give You everyone and everything!
Jesus- I give myself to you.
This prayer has become a huge game changer for Bethany and I! It’s a prayer that recenters me that God is God and I am not! The anxiety flows out and freedom and peace flood in! It’s powerful and comforting at the same time! - click here if you’d like to try The One Minute Pause FREE app.
Bethany loves reading her Bible and especially listening to 1 minute pause. When she plays the app and the music comes on, we both stop and give everyone and everything back to God.
There’s no perfect family on planet earth- Every family has messy, complicated, layers of conflict, hurts, disagreements or divisions.
But I’m encouraged to know that nothing is too difficult for God to heal, reconcile, make stronger, or restore. God’s heart is to reconcile us to Him and to each other. His heart longs for us to live in shalom.
Surrender is a difficult but powerful stepping stone to finding Family Wholeness. Remember- we’re not giving up, we’re “surrendering up” to the One who loves us most.
Next post I’ll be looking at another “stepping stone” to wholeness but this week, let’s focus on surrendering our messy relationships or broken pieces. The next time anxiety over a fractured relationship starts to overwhelm your mind, I invite you to take a deep breath, open your hands, and whisper that simple, liberating prayer: “Lord, I give You everyone and everything.”
Join the Conversation: What is one thing you struggle to “surrender up” to the Lord? Let me know in the comments below- I’d love to hear from you.
Seeking His Shalom in a very messy world- hugs- Cindy