He reveals deep and mysterious things and knows what lies hidden in darkness, though he is surrounded by light. I thank and praise you … for you have given me wisdom and strength. Daniel 2:22-23
Imagine the scene. King Nebuchanezzar is furious. All his magicians, sorcerers, and astrologers just told him, “you are asking us to do the impossible -no man can tell you your dream”. No second chances for these guys. They are instantly thrown into the lions den. Then the Kings goes on a tyrant and decides that he is fed up with all the wise men of the kingdom and says kill them all. Daniel and his friends just happen to be next on the chopping block. The king’s men storm in to tell them of their fate. Yet, Daniel calmly and wisely persuades them to give him more time and promises he will interpret the dream.
Daniel goes back home with his friends and they get on their knees as ask the Lord to reveal the secret of the king’s dream. That very night God gave Daniel a vision of exactly what the king had seen. Daniel woke up rejoicing and praising God for granting his request. God revealed to him what no man could have known and showed him the truth that rescued him from king’s decree.
The beautiful thing about God, is this is what He wants to do for us. In the places where our hearts are covered with layers of pain and hurt, he wants to reveal to us the secret that will free us. But first, we must seek Him and open our heart before Him. Realizing, as Daniel did, that we can’t do this on our own, but need God to reveal to us what only He can.
We discussed last week that healing begins with Awareness. Once the obstacles and debris have been identified, the natural progression is to remove the barriers. In the construction process, the builder prepares for a new foundation by breaking ground. He brings in the the exact equipment needed, and removes any barriers that would hinder the pouring of the new foundation.
God is the bulldozer. He has just the right equipment our heart needs. He is ready and willing to break ground in our heart so that the barriers can be remove and His truth can be poured in.
The Second Building Block To Healing Is Revealing
Revealing requires us to open our heart, allow God to break ground, and clear away the debris that has settled there. This debris was never meant to stay. When we are hurt we carry the burdens of painful memories, overwhelming emotions, negative beliefs, and patterns of coping that add to our pain. Revealing is about uncovering those layers.
Shame will tell you to hide and keep it tucked away. But the truth is, you must reveal to heal. Revealing means we share what’s in our heart, not avoid it. This is the only way we can begin to see the debris through God’s perspective. Sharing opens the door to hearing the Truth our heart needs and experiencing the acceptance we all long for. Connecting our pain with God’s perspective helps us see ourselves and our world differently and prepares the way for a whole new foundation to be laid.
Obviously, we all have different experiences and varying degrees of debris that have settled in our heart. Some things may be too painful and overwhelming to process on your own, and will require that you reached out to a professional counselor or pastor. The awareness process naturally leads us to a vulnerable place outside of our walls of denial and avoidance. In this place of vulnerability, we need the support of others to provide a safety net that guides us and helps us to see the layers of debris in our heart through God’s perspective. Painful, abusive early experiences often need more of the demolition mode type work I mention in the previous post. Limiting mindsets and rigid, unhealthy patterns of coping planted when we are young, grow deep roots. They can be hard to identify on our own because they have existed for years – even decades. If your awareness process has brought you to this place, I encourage you to reach out and begin your healing journey with a trusted professional that can walk alongside you.
At other times in our lives we are in need of some form of remodeling or re-framing. This is where the revealing process can occur during our quiet time with the Lord or in a conversation or prayer time with a trusted friend. Reflecting and spending time sharing our heart with God and others is an essential, healthy process we all need to maintain. Simply because “life” continues to happen. We get disappointed, hurt, experience rejection, doubt, and fear. It is all a part of life. Without regular heart checks things can pile up and affect our mood, mind, and will.
I recently found myself in a dark place emotionally. I felt depressed which led me to entertain a hopeless mindset and it affect my will to do the things God had been placing on my heart. I have been pushing for two years now to roll out the SHINE program while continuing to write a book, counsel clients, and be a mom and wife. I was worn thin from pushing so hard and had grown weary. I felt doubt creep in my heart – wondering if I had somehow made this whole thing up on my own and God really hadn’t called me to this.
I knew it was time for some remodeling to take place in my heart. My thinking wasn’t lining up with God’s Word. So I got alone with the Lord and asked him, “What do you want to say to me Lord about this doubt in my heart?” Then He led me in His Word to Psalm 33:15, “He fashions their hearts individually…” This verse hit right to core of my doubt. This wasn’t my dream. It was His that He fashioned in my heart. This was the very re-framing my heart needed to change the direction of my mood, mind, and will.
When we take time to pause to seek God’s perspective, he can place the perfect message in front of us that set us free from our limiting view. He used a night vision with Daniel. He spoke to Moses through a burning bush, Joseph through dreams, Gideon an enemy soldier (look it up, amazing story Judges 7: 9-15) and Balaam through a donkey. Yes, I did say donkey. With Saul He was more direct. Saul and his friends heard God’s voice loud and clear (Acts 9:4-7).
As long as our heart is open to hear, God can use any means possible to speak right to our need. He sometimes uses other people, His Word, the lyrics in a songs, or through spontaneous thoughts & images that pop in our mind. God is limitless but we limit Him because it is hard to believe that God would want to pursue us and speak to us. I am always in awe when I think about how God spoke, directed, and connected with people in the Bible and how He does it with my heart still today. He wants to speak to you too and reveal the secrets in His Word that will free you. Will you open your heart to hear?
Task of the Week
If you brought awareness to an emotional pattern, limiting mindset, or way of protecting yourself that is holding you back from healing, evaluate whether this is a demolition process in need of a professional to help you see it through or if this is a remodeling project in your heart that needs a dose of God’s perspective. Then take that first step towards the process you personally need at this time. All healing requires action.
Remember: The key to the revealing process is to receive God’s perspective in the place of what we came to believe. Discover what lies you been believing that don’t line up with the truth in God’s word and ask God, What do you want me to begin to believe instead? Then the process begins of laying down a new foundation based on the Truth God reveals to your heart.
Next week we will discussed the third building block to healing: REBUILDING – learning how to let go of our old beliefs and embrace the truth God reveals to our heart. I hope you will continue this journey and join me next week.
Be Blessed ~ Be a Light!