Heart of Stone
Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. - Ezekiel 36:26
Each and every person has dealt with rejection at some point in their lives. For some, it was a deep cutting, obvious, consistent, long lasting, daily pain. For the lucky, it may have occurred only a few times. Nevertheless, we all have dealt with it in our lives.
That thought, that everyone has dealt with rejection, is very new to me. In fact, it was a revelation that came only tonight. Every person, no exceptions, has dealt with rejection. How sad is that?
As a result of rejection, we make decisions. We choose to puff ourselves up with pride sometimes, so that no one will ever cut you down. You don't need anyone! Sometimes, we will close ourselves off. We will refuse to take risks. If you're anything like me, you will avoid the pride thing, consider yourself worthless and attempt to turn your heart to stone. You close yourself off to emotion. You dry up that well of tears and convince yourself that you are fine.
I realized over the last couple weeks that I have, in all honesty, forgotten how to cry. It seems like a relatively simple task, which requires minimal effort, yet somehow, I can't remember how to do it. Now, I never would have thought for a moment that my heart was stone. I mean, come on, I love people. I love to help and serve. I have compassion on all people. I'm not angry or bitter. To say I have a heart of stone seems, well, untrue, to say the least.
Sitting at a bible study tonight, talking about being in touch with our emotions and how our emotions say so much about who we are, I realized that this is indeed something I struggle with. I have indeed closed my heart off to emotion. I won't allow myself to feel the same depths of the pain I experienced in rejection so many years ago and so, my heart became stone.
It seems as though the story should end there, but it doesn't. God has offered to change it back to a heart of flesh. He has offered me the true love and acceptance in Him that is so great that it covers any fleshly rejection. He has offered me a heart that can feel things so much deeper than I had ever felt before.
How do I get it? I simply go to Him, rest in Him and ask Him to soften my hard heart. I ask Him to heal me in those broken places, mend those cracks. I ask for a new heart. I trust Him and believe. My heart will again be new.
Each and every person has dealt with rejection at some point in their lives. For some, it was a deep cutting, obvious, consistent, long lasting, daily pain. For the lucky, it may have occurred only a few times. Nevertheless, we all have dealt with it in our lives.
That thought, that everyone has dealt with rejection, is very new to me. In fact, it was a revelation that came only tonight. Every person, no exceptions, has dealt with rejection. How sad is that?
As a result of rejection, we make decisions. We choose to puff ourselves up with pride sometimes, so that no one will ever cut you down. You don't need anyone! Sometimes, we will close ourselves off. We will refuse to take risks. If you're anything like me, you will avoid the pride thing, consider yourself worthless and attempt to turn your heart to stone. You close yourself off to emotion. You dry up that well of tears and convince yourself that you are fine.
I realized over the last couple weeks that I have, in all honesty, forgotten how to cry. It seems like a relatively simple task, which requires minimal effort, yet somehow, I can't remember how to do it. Now, I never would have thought for a moment that my heart was stone. I mean, come on, I love people. I love to help and serve. I have compassion on all people. I'm not angry or bitter. To say I have a heart of stone seems, well, untrue, to say the least.
Sitting at a bible study tonight, talking about being in touch with our emotions and how our emotions say so much about who we are, I realized that this is indeed something I struggle with. I have indeed closed my heart off to emotion. I won't allow myself to feel the same depths of the pain I experienced in rejection so many years ago and so, my heart became stone.
It seems as though the story should end there, but it doesn't. God has offered to change it back to a heart of flesh. He has offered me the true love and acceptance in Him that is so great that it covers any fleshly rejection. He has offered me a heart that can feel things so much deeper than I had ever felt before.
How do I get it? I simply go to Him, rest in Him and ask Him to soften my hard heart. I ask Him to heal me in those broken places, mend those cracks. I ask for a new heart. I trust Him and believe. My heart will again be new.
posted by Kim McInerney | 4:07 AM
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