I will warn you this post is a little long…leaning in close and listening to the Lord. Hoping that this may help someone out there struggling.

I have been thinking a lot about relationships lately. I see some that are fractured and struggling to move past hurts, some that have ended due to love never having been there. Others bearing the burdens of long ago hurts that keep people burdened down and closed off, and lastly some just falling apart of one’s own selfish pride and wants.

It breaks my heart every time. Broken relationships and moving on always sound better than the actual process. Unless you are in a really abusive relationship and then the going is easy for self-preservation.

Everyone is looking for something, they want the WOW factor in play at all times. They are restless and always searching needing something or someone new to fill the spot that really belongs to just one. We have so much stuff, so many adult toys, so many distractions to keep us numb and blinded really. Not that those things are bad, but when they take over and all else is falling apart, particularly your soul, it is not a good thing. We have children growing up feeling entitled, they have been given so much in life, many not disciplined by parents who want to be their friend instead of parenting and punishing bad behavior, or disobedience to authority. We see such things in the news all the time. It all breaks my heart; we are living in hard times these days. Oh, it may not be reflected in your wallet, that is not what I am talking about, it is the watching a world trying to go on with no love of Jesus; he has been removed and left behind.

Scripture tells us that we need above all else a relationship with Jesus, the only one who can bring us true joy, no matter the circumstances of our lives.
People are feeling overwhelmed and suicide seems to be running rampant these days. Jesus, He is the everything. If we are a Christian, he should be our everything, our first love. All else should circle around that relationship. Because as a believer if your relationship is not active and rich, if you are not reading and praying daily, then you start focusing on all the things you perceive to be wrong and listening to the lies of the enemy tell yoou…you are deserving of so much more!

I have been there many years ago, I let my prayer life dwindle down to almost nothing, I stopped reading my Bible, I started focusing on all the things that seemed wrong and my loneliness, hurt, disappointments overtook me. My first love was silenced and life began to unravel. I thought, “I’ve got this,” “I will do it my way.” All I can say is be careful with that mentality, it will lead you by the nose for a long time and so many times it does not end well. Because God is Holy and you are his he will not allow you to continue to sin, continue to stagnate, as I said in my other post, you will have a”Come To Jesus Moment.” Some are much harder than others.

Yes, he will discipline you and love you back into a right relationship when you yield to him, and sometimes he makes it all work out okay and sometimes it does not, more pain comes.

Let’s look at some scripture that can feed your soul, put the focus back where it is intended to be.

1 John 1:5-7 “This is the message we heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim we have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”
(When we focus on the light, those dark thoughts and actions slip away. We are changed in his presence and when we spend time with him.)

Hebrews 4:12-13 “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creations is hidden from God’s sight.”
(I don’t know about you, but this is a sobering verse.)

Psalm 18:30 “As for God, his way is perfect, the word of the Lord is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him.”
(Don’t you crave a flawless word, truth. Doesn’t being shielded and protected sound so good?”)

John 4:24 ” God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship him in spirit and in truth.”
(He already knows everything, be honest, tell him your heart, he will listen and he will guide you back into truth.)

! John 4:16 “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.”
(Oh, how I want to live in love, which brings joy and peace.)

Colossians 1:16-17 “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities, all things were created by him and for him.” 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”
(He can hold you together, even when life seems to be tearing you apart. He created you and knows your frame, knows your heart, better than you. Lean in close and listen to the Holy Spirit teach you and guide you.)

And lastly, I have to end with this one.
Revelation 22:13 “I am the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”
(Enough said: if you want true happiness, contentment, guidance, protection, answers etc…He is…and He can…)

I have learned through many a hard experience and lesson that there is nothing that can fill the longings of our hearts and minds like Jesus. There is nothing sweeter than a right relationship with him. Nothing in this world can give you a joy that passes understanding not matter what. So, if you have fixed yourself on yourself; your wants, your thoughts, the me mentality, get if focused back on Jesus, the lies the enemy is spuing will be gone, you will think clearly again and life will look be much better in a relationship with the Lord Jesus. Our hearts will deceive us, Jesus never will. He knows our hearts more than we, and even tells us that our hearts are deceitful above all else.
Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure, Who can understand it?” ( I know, I know…the one who formed it!)

Well, in closing let me just say that I have learned surrender to the Lord is better than disobedience. His love covers a multitude of sin. He is good, He is faithful, He is able, He is. It is never too late to right your relationship with Jesus, trust His love for you and lean in close as he teaches you His truths, His ways. Blessings as you journey toward peace, joy and true happiness that is only found in knowing Him.