There is a phenomenon happening referred to as “church hurt”. This is classified as an experience of offense, betrayal, abuse or when someone you may have believed in has seemingly failed you. If we are honest, every one of us has probably let someone down, even as Christians.
A church is made up of a collective group of individuals that are in pursuit of becoming more like God. In this pursuit, our frailties and imperfections are exposed, causing friction and problems with one another. When we don’t deal with our frailties and imperfections correctly, we experience real issues.
Often times as Christians we focus on the hurt that we feel others may cause us, but very seldom do we zone in on the hurt that we, the church, cause God.
The things that cause church hurt stem from hurting God. When we neglect to do things right by obeying how his word instructs us to treat his people, we then hurt others.
This is what I have had to purpose to focus on. I, myself, have been guilty of this very phenomenon until one day God asked me, “What about me? What about my hurt?” I was floored! From that moment, I had to pray to readjust my focus.
God calls the church his “bride”. We are very valuable and important to our creator. He has such a tremendous love for us that he sent his son to die for us to have a true relationship with him. God sent his son after we were separated from him through OUR disobedience.
God created human beings to have genuine fellowship with him, yet we often times gravitate to things that seem to bring us more fulfillment, and in essence, we “hurt” God.
How can we offend or hurt God?
We offend him when we take on his name as Christians and then neglect to represent him in our lifestyle. Just as one could experience offense from a fellow church member, whether in speech toward them or harsh treatment, we cause God offense by saying and doing things that we know he does not approve of.
We cause God to hurt when we spend more time and effort pursuing things that please us than things that please him. He desires fellowship with his bride. He wants time with us. The first fruits of our time is what we should give him. God wants our best!! We want the best of our friend’s or companion’s interaction. No one wants to only get a portion of your attention when interacting, especially when they truly value you or love you.
Another way we cause God to hurt is when we handle one another without care and consideration. We can become so consumed with getting our point across that we don’t incorporate compassion and a spirit of meekness when communicating. This causes unnecessary stumbling for each other. God wants his church to work in harmony, to function as a healthy body. When there are undertones and undisclosed feelings, we tend to walk around harboring offense, and in essence, we open the door to unforgiveness. This is hurtful to God because he constantly offers his power to purge us and cleanse our spirits. He knows that offense and unforgiveness ultimately separates us from him, so he’s giving us a helping hand! He wants us to take it!
We also cause God to hurt when we speak evil of our sister or brother in the body of Christ. He created us ALL. We ALL belong to him. He’s working on each of US. When we cause someone to see another individual in a negative light, we are badmouthing HIS creation.
Imagine if we kept a consciousness toward God, and maintained a mindset to please him daily. There is no way that we would do anything to offend him. We, as the “church”, would cease from hurting HIM! Let us take inventory of our own lives and see if we are doing things that disappointment him. If we did this….even the concept of “church hurt” would cease.
How could we hurt the creator if we were not hurting his creation through our actions?
Let’s focus on pleasing God through obedience to his word and maintaining a genuine relationship with him. I know deep inside my heart, that if we do this, we will see a tremendous change for the better in our lives and those around us.
Can I be honest? It genuinely hurts me to displease God. Knowing he’s disappointed in me causes me to erneastly request that he change ME because pleasing my father is my priority.
So take this into consideration: the hurt that we may feel others have caused us may parallel with the hurt we may be causing God. Never ponder too much on what someone has done to you, but always be mindful of maintaining right standing with God so that you don’t forfeit your mercy when you need it. If you abide in him, those offenses from others will not affect you to the degree of leaving God and his standards, or better yet….hurting him.
About the Author: Daphine Bush
I am a young woman with a heart for God! I love singing, praising and worshiping, none other than Jesus Christ. I am an aspiring author and Christian recording artist. I felt compelled to start a blog inspired by my love for God, aspects of fashion and my heart to uplift others through music and writing. I hope that you all enjoy.
