In 2008, Ruth Graham, daughter of Billy Graham, released a book called In Every Pew Sits a Broken Heart: Hope for the Hurting. In it she revealed many of her painful struggles that occurred despite the fact that she was the daughter of a renowned evangelist.
She made the point that, although there is victory and overcoming in Jesus, many in the church still need healing. She did.
Suffering and shame are often hidden under a pretense of “having it altogether,” and trying to effect saintliness. People think they must look a certain way to be acceptable in a Christian community.
Nothing could be further from the truth. The cliché that the “church is a hospital for sinners, not a museum for saints,” is so true. In a Christian fellowship, yes, there may be those people who are truly mature and have overcome much, if not all, of the wounding they have experienced in their lives.
Yet, there are also other people in various stages of healing and maturing. Sometimes, out of shame and embarrassment, they may hide the things for which they need help.
There is a need for honesty in the church. The ministry of healing needs a fresh ramping up—particularly in the area of inner healing and deliverance.
We need the fresh oil of the Spirit and a willingness to be open and accept one another, short of perfection and without making comparisons.
In this episode of the Rooted by the Stream podcast called Rescued, recovery pastor Tom Langhofer, on the staff of a Midwestern megachurch, tells the story of his life’s journey. He describes how he moved into full-blown addiction after experimenting with drugs and alcohol as a teen.
Looking like a man who was a huge success in business and civic life, he had everyone fooled until he fell apart. But when he did, Jesus was waiting, as He does for all of us, with open arms. {eoa}
