we are not what we go thru

When traumatic things happen in our lives, they tend to shake up our sense of who we are.  Sometimes to the point that we feel forever changed by those things.  It is true for each of us that our story is made up of the events and relationships of our lives.  We are shaped by experiences; but more importantly, we are shaped by what we do with them and how we react to them.  In this sense, trauma and other difficult things, do not have to define us.  We do not have to take on their identity or nature.  Instead, we hope in One who has promised to make all things new, including us.  We hope in His compassion and gentle healing touch.  We hope in his ferocious love for us and His commitment to our good.

And so we walk thru the pain, letting our feelings receive validation and seeing how our thinking and behavior might be altered.  But we do not stay there.  We insist that our feelings bow to truth.  We bring our thinking in line with the culture of heaven.  We declare the promises of God - even if they are still in the distance.  We fight to keep our souls in a good place, knowing that the Trinity fights for us and alongside us.

Ultimately, we find ourselves on the other side.  With richer stories to tell of who God is and who we are in Him.  We go deeper into life that is truly life.  And one more nail is struck into hell's coffin.