“Each new morn New widows howl, new orphans cry New sorrows strike heaven on the face.” -Shakespeare (Macbeth) “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” -Psalm 34: 18 In the Introduction to his latest book, Walking with God through Pain and Suffering, Timothy Keller notes that no matter how […]
“But we had hope that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since thing happened.” -Luke 24: 21 Commenting on Luke’s account of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, Stephen Mansfield (Healing Your Church Hurt) states that “we had hoped” is a […]
In Chapter 6 of Healing Your Church Hurt, Stephen Mansfield humorously notes that he has a friend who always is threatening to write a book titled “Demons I Have Known and Loved”. Stephen’s friend is greatly gifted in helping people get free from their bondages, so there is more than a grain of truth in […]
“O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me.” -Psalm 25: 2 Stephen Mansfield continues Chapter 6 of Healing Your Church Hurt by noting that wounded people often live afterward with a deep sense of shame. While we tend to define shame as […]
In Chapter 6 of Healing Your Church Hurts, author Stephen Mansfield states that it would be wonderful if pain simply was pain and that was the end of it. Reality is much different. When it comes to emotional pain, the greatest damage often is what continues to resonate in our soul when the feeling of […]
“It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees.” -Psalm 119: 71 Stephen Mansfield states in Chapter 6 of Healing Your Church Hurt that we should have the same attitude as the psalmist because that attitude is rooted in the truth of God. Moreover, there are three wonderful benefits that […]
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” -Ephesians 2: 10 In Chapter 6 of Healing Your Church Hurt, author and former pastor Stephen Mansfield states that Paul’s words ignite our passion to do the good works God has planned for […]
Stephen Mansfield begins Chapter 6 (“Truths for Getting Whole”) of Healing Your Church Hurt by drawing on Jesus’ cleansing the ten lepers, as found in Luke 17: 11-19. Stephen notes that the Greek word for “cleansed” is katharizo, meaning to “make clean”, to remove “physical stains and dirt, as in the case of utensils.” In other […]
“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” -Luke 6: 27-28 As Stephen Mansfield concludes Chapter 5 of Healing Your Church Hurt, he confesses that he failed many time to forgive those involved in his […]
In this post, author Stephen Mansfield (Healing Your Church Hurt) discusses the third and most significant facet of forgiveness and how it is essential to being set free. 3. Charizomai means “to bestow favor or extend mercy”. Stephen admits that during his journey to forgive, he came to realize his tendency to transform his mental image of […]
“For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” -Matthew 6: 14-15 Today Stephen Mansfield (Healing Your Church Hurt) discusses the second facet of forgiveness and how it is essential to being […]
As Stephen Mansfield concludes Chapter 5 of Healing Your Church Hurt, he states that as he paid attention to three words God uses for forgiveness in Scripture, he found the actual steps we need to take in order to forgive and ultimately leave us changed. The author notes: “Each presents a distinct facet of what […]