The Common Ground project is all about returning to love (God’s love) and reconciling broken relationships. A key message from that project is, “What divides a family divides a nation.” However, one of the most frequent responses I’ve gotten when I share the songs and stories from Common Ground is this: “I know this is right. We need to return to love and reconcile relationships, but what about when we can’t? What do we do then?” My new record, The Other Side, and the related podcasts, blogs, and social posts will address this question at length. Division deeply grieves me, but it is sadly sometimes necessary. Looking at the “Three Realms” I’ve been writing and posting about lately, it can be explained this way.
Heavenly Realm
Almost 20 years ago, I had a recurring vision playing in my head. I would see myself running toward the tires of an obstacle course. Every time I would aim for that first tire, I would hit the side of it and turn my ankle. I would return to the starting line and try it again, but I would turn my ankle again. Then, I realized the Holy Spirit was standing at the starting line. I asked, "What are you trying to show me here, Lord?" This is how the Lord answered, "There are some things I can not teach you with words. You have to become conditioned until you learn to stop hurting yourself." This is the live-and-learn of "The Boomerang Effect." At its core, I believe this is connected to our unwillingness to face the reality of a spirit realm enemy, much less physical realm enemies. We want to believe the best in others, but God himself says to the prophet Jeremiah, "Even if Moses and Samuel stood before me pleading for these people, I would not help them. Away with them!" On a macro level (national/global) and micro level (family/personal,) we are learning how to stop hurting ourselves. We are doing things over and over again as we learn who to trust and how to love. It may be cloudy and confusing for a time, but eventually, truth will prevail and win out.
Flesh/Soul Realm
The "enemy of our soul" is after our empathy and compassion. In the flesh/soul realm, it is so satisfying to experience feelings of empathy and compassion for our friends and loved ones. We want to return to that feel-good experience as often as possible. We're convinced this is love. You might even say those feelings are slightly addictive, but buyer beware! There is a fine line between grace and enabling - even empowering evil. If we are not objectively discerning, our empathy and compassion can be aimed in the wrong direction and unintentionally empower ongoing abuse. This is a distorted use of our God-given empathy and compassion. If the enemy can distort the use of these gifts long enough, we are liable to live with abuse until our hearts harden and we lose the gifts of empathy and compassion altogether. How do we avoid this? KEEP READING
Word/Spirit
I want to use my time left on earth doing whatever I can to promote the repair of the division in America (the macro) beginning with the divisions within families and friendships (the micro.) As much as I want to use my "voice" to promote mutual respect and love, love, love for each other, let me give a drastic example of at least one scenario where the line must be drawn and a necessary division must take place. I am not, nor is Jesus, going to share in mutual love and respect with a child sex trafficker. Without authentic repentance, division becomes necessary. As we boomerang in life, repeating the same mistakes and gaining more discernment and wisdom each time, we come to understand a hard truth. Scripture does say in Ephesians 6 that our battle is not ultimately with each other (flesh and blood). It is against spiritual forces of evil. At the same time, people (flesh and blood) align and cooperate with these forces of evil, as is the case with child sex traffickers. Scripture also clearly instructs us not to align with those who walk in darkness. "What communion has light with darkness?" We are asked this question in 2 Corinthians 6. Whenever possible, the best thing to do in relationship struggles is return to love and reconcile our relationships, but when others in our life are consistently aligned with and walking in darkness void of repentance, the best thing to do is draw the line, take the live-and-learn, and boomerang free from those malaligned relationships no matter how hard that might seem. Turn again, and walk together with those who walk in the light.
When we walk in the light, we are empowered to hold onto our God-given empathy and compassion, especially for those who walk in the dark. The darkness is winning out in those cases and this should grieve us, not harden our hearts. We never stop praying, even when we have to draw a line and allow the necessary division. As drastic as it may seem, this even goes for child sex traffickers, even murderers, or anyone walking in any level of darkness. Our hope and prayer of God-given empathy and compassion is that they would choose to repent and walk in the light with us. While we can not exchange mutual love and respect in intimate friendship or relationship when a necessary division is in place, still, we never ever lose our love for them, and turn to hate, resentment, or bitterness - ever!
Love to ALL,
Jill