Barbie Loflin

Sometimes the most frustrating thing in the world can be trying to forget the past. We remember old wounds and unkind words quite easily. It is as if with each replaying of the incident, it becomes etched a bit deeper upon our soul. We hit the rewind button, listen to the whispers of the enemy and fall into the pit of self-pity, crying all the while in our best I-don’t-deserve-this martyrs’ voice, “Why do you not take this from me, Lord? Why must I continue to wallow in these memories?”

As a child I was forever falling out of trees, off of swings, into ditches, off of bicycles. To say I was not the most feminine flower in the garden would be quite accurate. During all of these “adventures” there were inevitable scrapes, cuts and bruises. As I would hobble into my mother’s kitchen, hands clenched over the offended area, the first words from my mother’s mouth were always, “Come here and let me see what has happened.” She would lift me onto the counter and I would open my grimy fingers to reveal the wound. Her next words were “Oh, see, that’s not so bad.” She would take a soft washcloth, run it under warm water and gently cleanse the area. She would then hold the warm cloth against the wound until it started to feel better. Her final act was to apply a healing balm and seal the wound with a bandage to keep out infection. Her instructions were to leave the bandage on and not to keep opening and closing it. The only time that bandage was to be removed was when mama said so. “You keep opening that bandage up and looking at it and it’s gonna get infected.”

I don’t have to tell you where I’m going with this. The first step in the process is always going to be removing our clenched hands from the wound and letting the Father begin the healing process.

Let it Go

You carry a wounded heart in hand,

You’ve done it now for years.

From time to time you take it out,

To mourn and shed your tears.

What should have healed so long ago,

Lays fresh and bleeding still,

For you refuse to lay it down,

Though oft you say you will.

Bound tight by cords of bitterness,

The pain a living thing,

It consumes your days, directs your ways,

Talons in your mind, it clings.

Flashes from your past do play,

You long so to be free,

But, child, you cannot do alone,

What must be done by Me.

Only I can cleanse your mind,

Heal the scars you hide.

Daughter, lay all at My feet.

Forget all you have tried.

Complete and whole, My plan for you,

No ties to wounds of past.

Cease ups and downs, walk stable, sure,

For child, My healing lasts.

Still, one thing will I need of you.

Oh Yes, I’m sure you know.

If I’m to take the hurt away,

You must choose to let it go!