Teach Me to Love Again

I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!]
Hebrews 13:5b

Pain can be a dreadful teacher when it comes to relationships. Think about it, we open our hearts to be loving and accepting to others at a young age. That innocence is betrayed at the first sign of disappointment, rejection or abandonment, leaving us with a pain that shakes us to our core. Through it all, we must face the inevitable decision to love again.

Vulnerability does not come easy after we have been hurt. We often brace ourselves for the next betrayal. The pain of it leaves us fearful and alone. It is easy to recoil instead of taking a chance at being hurt again. Recoiling causes us to retreat more and more into ourselves, our work, success, and other accomplishment or even addictions. When we do, we lose out on one of the greatest human experiences we can ever have; love.

If you are currently at a crossroads in your relationship, what choice will you make? Will you retreat to the frightful cave you built for yourself or will you be courageous and trust that through it all, God is with you? Regardless to how anyone else makes us feel, the pain they caused in our lives, we have a Savior that promises not to leave us nor forsake us. He will never abandon us, physically or emotionally. God’s love can bring about the freedom needed to love again. God’s love can heal our wounded souls and teach us how to open our hearts again even amid bouts of fear.

Father, you know the pain and the heartaches we have experienced in our relationships. You know the deep wounds that still bleed need mending. I thank you that you are the God that can bind up those very wounds and heal our broken hearts. Teach us to love again, I pray. Teach us to trust again. Teach us to give ourselves freely even amid fear. Teach us to be true to ourselves and set proper boundaries in place in all our relationships. It is in Jesus’s precious name we pray, Amen.

By Mary Pinckney
Used by Permission