“ Going straight in and loving Jesus in these very places opens the door to his presence again.”
Meet me in this place, Lord.
As I’ m praying this, I’ m“ moving toward” the pain and hurt. I’ m moving toward where hope lives in my heart and soul. The Revelation 3:20 dynamic of opening the door works far better when we are resident there— not detached, dissociated, operating from afar.
“ Going straight in and loving Jesus in these very places opens the door to his presence again.”
Jesus responded with a question:“ What are you feeling here?”
I feel hurt and angry.
The tears began to come.
I feel cynical and I don’ t want to be cynical.
Jesus continued,“ Invite me in. Love me here.”
I do, Lord. I love you here. I love you in the place of Hope in my soul. I love you in this place of pain and anger. O Jesus, come into the heartache and the loss of hope. I love you here, Lord. I love you here.
I know it might sound raw to love Christ in the very place of harm, but this we must do. For as we love Christ, it opens the soul to him. Harm of any kind causes us to pull away from Jesus( or our Father), like a sea anemone does when you touch it— it flinches, draws back, closes up. The soul does this with harm, rejection, disappointments. Going straight in and loving Jesus in these very places opens the door to his presence again. It also defeats Satan’ s purposes almost immediately.
Jesus continued,“ Cleanse this place with my blood.”
I do, Lord. I wash this place, all hope within me, with the Blood of Christ.
“ Now cleanse it with the River of Life.”
Yes, Lord, thank you. I cleanse hope in me with the River of Life. I cleanse all cynicism, anger, and despair. Thank you, Lord.
The pragmatist wants more practical explanation before entering into this exquisite mercy. Where exactly is hope in me? But what about my feelings? How do I love Christ when I’ m mad at him? They might spend months processing all this, turning it over and over, and yet be in the exact same place of need— the need to give Jesus access. Yes, we often need the help of others to bring full and complete healing to our damaged souls. How blessed you are if you can talk things through with a therapist, priest, or prayer partner.
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