Stomping Out the Darkness by Neil T. Anderson

Author:Neil T. Anderson [Anderson, Neil T. and Dave Park]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Identification (Religion)—Juvenile literature, Junior high school students— Religious life, High school students—Religious life, Spiritual life—Christianity— Juvenile literature, JNF049130
ISBN: 9781441265753
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2014-09-30T04:00:00+00:00

Note

1. Neil T. Anderson and Steve Russo, The Seduction of Our Children (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 1991), pp. 107-108. Used by permission.

11

HEALING EMOTIONAL WOUNDS FROM YOUR PAST

“We must learn how to resolve past problems or our hurt will keep building up as we continue to withdraw from life.”

Dan and Cindy were a fine young Christian couple who were preparing for ministry on the mission field. Then tragedy struck. Cindy was raped, and the event tore the couple up inside. The shock was so severe that they moved to another town. As hard as she tried to get back to normal life, Cindy couldn’t shake the horrible memories and feelings from her experience.

Six months after the rape, Dan and Cindy attended a church conference where I (Neil) was speaking. During the conference, Cindy called me in tears. “Neil, I just can’t get over this thing. I know God can turn everything into good, but how is He going to do that? Every time I think about what happened I start to cry.”

“Wait a minute, Cindy,” I said. “You’ve misunderstood something. God will work everything out for good, but He doesn’t make a bad thing good. What happened to you was very bad. God’s good thing is to show you how you can walk through your crisis and come out of it a better person.”

“But I just can’t separate myself from my experience,” she sobbed. “I’ve been raped, Neil, and I’ll be a victim of that all my life.”

“No, Cindy,” I insisted. “The rape happened to you, but it hasn’t changed who you are, nor does it have to control you. You were the victim of a terrible, ugly tragedy. But if you only see yourself as a rape victim for the rest of your life, you will never get over your tragedy. You’re a child of God. No event or person, good or bad, can rob you of that.”

Cindy got a grip on the truth that Jesus Christ, not her past hurts, determines her identity. She and Dan are serving the Lord today.

BAD THINGS DO HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE

All of us have a number of hurtful, upsetting experiences in our past that have scarred us emotionally. You may have been physically, emotionally or sexually abused by a family member. You may have been severely frightened as a child. You may have suffered through a painful relationship: a broken friendship, the sudden death of someone special to you, the divorce of your parents. One or more shocking, hurtful events may have caused deep inner pain that has hindered your growth as a Christian.

Unlike our day-to-day emotions that vary according to how we think, the pain from past hurts is always there. Certain topics can trigger these hurts and cause a strong emotional reaction. For example, you may have felt something when you read Cindy’s story at the start of this chapter. If you or a close friend have been raped, just the mention of rape may have sparked anger, hatred or fear in you.

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