Farmgirl Paints: If you've been hurt...

A few nights ago I had a dream. We were in a car driving, and off to the right was a huge clearing, and lining the clearing were two rows of big trees. Passing through the trees and out into the open pasture were two enormous elephants. I yelled, STOP THE CAR...CHRISTMAS CARD PHOTO!!! ;) And then immediately we were in another dream scene changing our clothes in a stranger's upstairs bedroom. I opened the door to voices downstairs and apologized for using their bedroom. Fast forward to the next scene when we were riding those elephants in our fancy new clothes!!

Strange right? But I'm a big believer in God revealing himself through dreams. So I looked up elephants and found that elephants represent power, strength, faithfulness, intellect and steadfastness. To dream you are riding one means you are overcoming aspects of things you were once afraid of. Interesting.

I think there is a tie in somewhere between that dream and what the Lord has been showing me.

I know there are a lot of you hurting. I read your letters. And honestly I have no idea what to say back most of the time. I'm just like you. Walking through this life one day at a time. Seeking wisdom daily. Stumbling at times...looking for answers. But He knows my heart, and I so badly want to be used, to be poured out. So the ONLY answer I have is to point to Him. He knows what to say. He knows what you need.

Many of the hurts stem from the church. Which breaks my heart. Then there are those have been majorly hurt by a close family member. People who should have been trustworthy...who should have loved you unconditionally, they've left you feeling shattered, broken, lied to...shamed. And when those close to us leave us hurting it's hard to trust again. It can be a challenge to believe that God has our backs. That He loves us unconditionally...because for some reason he allowed that hurt right? He allowed you to get kicked in the gut and honestly you feel betrayed.

I think the only way we can move past those feelings is to realize that satan uses people. Whether they are in the church, fellow believers, family members, best friends, strangers etc... He can and will use people to hurt you, to get you off course. He's a liar. He's out to steal, kill, and destroy us. To deceive us. We can't forget who the real enemy is.

That's why there is so much emphasis on forgiveness in the Bible. We HAVE to step into forgiveness to move forward in our faith walk. The Lord forgave us. We must forgive others...including ourselves. If we hold onto the past and relive the hurt, we are in a constant holding pattern and we can't break free into what He's got for us.

And what He's got for us is major!!

He wants to lavish you in love. He wants to use YOU for His kingdom. He wants you to sit high, a child of the KING, and ride that elephant in your shiny new outfit...that He paid the price for.

Forgiven.

Whole.

Spotless.

Slate wiped clean.
Assured of His unconditional affection for you.

So if you've been hurt...I'm believing with you that those old things you've been carrying around will come off right now in the name of Jesus. That the pain of the past will not define you, and that your present and future will be like Christmas morning...full of beautiful surprises, lavish love gifts, and an underlying excitement of good things to come!!! Walk tall in His promises.

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BTW girls I wanted to spotlight a really sweet shop that you are sure to recognize...Kristi from Barn Owl Primitives. I just got these for the future basement studio:)) They are so cute!!! Took me forever to narrow it down because she's got so many great signs to choose from.

Kristi's signs are amazing, and her designs are in Target, HomeGoods, TJMaxx, Marshalls, Bed Bath & Beyond, Hobby Lobby and Cost Plus World etc... She's the real deal, and I'm so excited she's offering my readers a special discount to her shop. Check her out here and be sure to enter FARMGIRL15 for 15% off.

Happy Christmas shopping:)) Yikes...it's a comin'!