I’ve had on my heart for some time to speak into the lives of those who are interested in Jesus, but who have been deeply wounded by the church. Maybe that person is you.

I have a friend who can’t go to church. She just can’t because of the atrocities that she and her family experienced there. There were things that should never have happened. Dark things. Evil things. At church. In a place where she and her family should have been protected. And loved. Nurtured and built up. But, sometimes the devil shows up in a church house and there are troubled folks who care nothing for the way of Jesus, and some of those folks are in charge. So people get burned. And some of them never make it back.

Maybe your experience was different. Maybe you showed up and no one noticed you. Or perhaps you came and you were badly aching, but some spiritual person said some very insensitive spiritual things when all you actually needed was someone to listen to you and pray for you. Or maybe you’ve never stepped in the door of a church because all the church goers you know only seem to give a rip about Jesus one day a week.

At any rate, I’m gonna do my best to come here to this little space on the internet, at least for a string of Sundays, and I’m gonna be church to you. Now, I don’t want you to misunderstand me. I’m not enough, honestly. A blog post on a Sunday is not the sort of community that Jesus intended His friends to have. But, sometimes people just need a safe place. They need a place to heal up. To be nurtured and fed and tended to, so that they can understand what a healthy relationship within the Body of Christ actually looks like.

And that’s what I think Jesus is leading me to do here. To tend to your heart, however battered up it is right now.  (And on behalf of Jesus, can I just say that I’m sorry for what happened?  What you experienced wasn’t Him. I think deep down, you know that, or you wouldn’t be reading this right now.) When you cried, Jesus cried too.

I want you to know what Jesus is actually like. I want you to feel His love. His tenderness. To be able to sit in the warmth of His Presence and just work on your healing. Because the thing is, Jesus is very concerned about your heart. He noticed when you were looking and seeking and knocking and how the devil stepped in and threw some punches.

Jesus isn’t gonna waste your pain. He intends to use everything, for your good and His glory. (Romans 8:28) He’s not some egotistical God. He’s looking out for you. He has you in mind.

The whole world is aching for love and I want to show you something. I want to show you the way of Jesus. Have you ever read the definition of love in 1 Corinthians 13?   I replaced the word “love” for Jesus here because I aim to give you a vivid picture of how Jesus actually is toward you...

Jesus is patient and kind.
Jesus isn’t jealous,
He doesn’t brag,
and is not proud. 
Jesus is not rude,
or selfish,
and does not become angry easily.
Jesus does not remember wrongs done against Him.
He takes no pleasure in evil,
but rejoices over the truth. 
Jesus patiently accepts all things.

Because Jesus is love.

And love always trusts,
always hopes,
always continues strong.

Love never ends. (see 1 Corinthians 13)

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So, if you want to, friend, let me know your questions about Jesus or how I can pray for you. If you don’t want to comment below, you can email me here: surprisedbyhope@yahoo.com

With love,

Maggie