I am not Ok. There I said it. Honestly, I don’t like to admit it. The fact that I am a pastor and leader that statement might come as a surprise to hear. But if I am honest, I have regrets and hurts in my past that still cause me pain. They still affect my future more than I would like to admit. In fact if I am not carful they can impact my decisions. Recently I have learned that,

“Your past is not your past if it is still impacting your future.”

As a Christian there seems to be this unspoken thought that we are suppose to be ok. We are suppose to have it all together. We are suppose to answer the question, “How are you?” with “fine” or “I am good.”. But the reality is I am not fine and I suspect that you are not either. Sometimes I wish someone would say, “No really how are you?” So here it is…”Really how are you? Yes you the one reading this…How are you really?” 
 This past week I found myself pouring over the story of Joseph. I don’t believe that Joseph was ok either. He dealt with hurt, guilt, and shame just like we do. Go ahead take time to read about Joseph’s life in the book of Genesis. There is no way that his past did not affect his future.

Here is what I have learned and I hope it can help you as will…
1. Jesus longs to touch the parts of your heart that you are withholding from him. 

Some people never get beyond the pain of their past. It wreaks havoc on them.

They choose to believe they are inseparably attached to their past without realizing they are, in fact, making a choice to hold on to it. Perhaps, that is you as well. We have to come to grips that our past is still impacting our future before we can do anything else. 

You see the Bible is a story of broken people, and God’s choice to love them anyway. Let that sink in for a moment. God knows you are broken, he knows your past and he loves you any way. 

Is there a part of you that you think is untouchable? 
Maybe there’s something that happened in your past that is so off limits because you think it’s unredeemable. 

Jesus came to proclaim the kingdom of God and that meant healing.

Healing for people’s bodies and healing for people’s soul. Maybe, it is time that we quit withholding those parts of our heart from Him and admit that we are not ok. Go ahead and say it, “I am not ok”. It feels good doesn’t it. 

2. Time doesn’t heal all wounds. God heals all wounds. 
Even if you think it is, it’s not too late. You don’t have to live with a lifetime of regret. 
Jesus longs to touch parts of your heart that you are withholding from Him. Saying “Jesus help me” is one of the most honorable things a person can say. I have heard the quote, “Time heals all wounds my whole life.” I am not buying it any longer. I am choosing a different path moving forwards. Will you join me? 

I believe that when you surrender your past to God, he can take it and use it to help others and bring Glory to himself. What happened in our past if not dealt with properly, is more than likely crippling us from becoming who we were created to become. 

I am tired of my past crippling me from becoming who God created me to become. I know God created me for a purpose. So, today I am choosing to be ok with not being ok. I want God to use my past to help others deal with their’s.

So will you join me in acknowledging that you are not fine. You are not ok and that you have something in your past that is still impacting your future. So today, I am choosing to be ok with not being ok, so that God can redeem it and I can become who God wants me to become. 
(This is exactly what The Bridge Church is all about. We are a church of Broken people for broken people.)