Who Are You...Ashes or Beauty?...Thursday

8/27/15

(He sent me to...)
"provide for those who grieve in Zion—

to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes,"
Isaiah 61:3a

In the early years of the 2000's I was involved in the recovery program at our church. Two people who were working in the ministry were paired together in a group of 8 or less. We were the leaders of the groups...facilitators actually. None of the facilitators were actually licensed in any of the areas in which we were working. We used an amazing book called Healing for Damaged Emotions.  It was an amazing guide for the educationally prepared leader of such groups as well as for the leader who did not bring related education. What they did bring love of God, a dedication to help people work on the pain that they had know, and a dedication to be effective in doing this. What we as leaders found is that we were part of the class learning and healing as well as the other members of the group.

Yes, we all grew together and God led us and the members of the group to say and do things that were spot on for everyone...the "leaders" and the "members." I was shocked when I realized that the "leader" name switched back and forth when people shared their wisdom. It was amazing.

When I began my participation in this ministry, I had certain beliefs based on things that were not so true. I thought that people were the way they were because of a slovenly attitude or because of laziness, or even lack of intelligence. As I began to know my classmates I started to love them and to believe that most often people end up in one situation or another it is more often because of the damage that had been visiting on them when they were too young to separate the piles of information into truth and not really truth. I loved my friends from the classes and even would get angry for them when I knew some of the things they had suffered.

I came to a new understanding of what it means to be made in the image and likeness of God. I also learned to be a little bit easier on myself when I would suffer from lack of self esteem for one reason or another.

I learned to try to point out the following concept to my friends and I still do. While teaching them, I also was teaching myself. I used to say to the members of my class."Remember God did not make no junk."

This is the foundation of all that I believe with all my heart. I would say to all who are reading this that God indeed, DID NOT MAKE NO JUNK. You are beautiful and unique, and God loves you above anything you can understand.

Won't you please think about this 

and believe it?

Written by Corinne Mustafa