There is a phrase that is used these days that absolutely tears at me. It is so indicative of the mediocrity and brokenness that Satan asks us to accept. He whispers, "Life is terrible. It can't get any worse (or could it?), and you can't feel any better...so you might as well just deal with it."
And we nod, lift our heads, brush off the dirt, and say resignedly, "And life goes on."
And yes: life goes on. It does. The circumstances that tear us down will soon be only painful memories, and the people who hurt us will soon move out of our lives. In some ways, the recognition of this fact is admirable. There is something in it that says, "No, I will not let these things break me. I will continue to fight and live and go on, and realize that I won't always feel like this." It refuses defeat.
But at the same time, it refuses healing.
Jesus did not die so that you could accept your pain and carry it with you for the rest of your life. He did not rescue you from a life of misery just so that you would "deal" with your heartbreak by pushing it to the back of your mind. He does not stand with open arms, able to carry the entire weight of the entire world's sin, waiting for you to come to Him, just so you can say, "Nah, it's okay. Life goes on. I'll get over it."
No, my friend, you are made for more! So much more! Your God did not design you to accept brokenness. He did not create you for a life where crack after crack forms in your heart and you simply try to ignore it and forget the pain. He shaped you so that you would be whole. He does not want you to muddle through a mediocre life, pushing yourself back up time and again thinking that's the only way life can be -- you might as well deal with it. No! Your God made you more than a conqueror in Christ Jesus. You are to live victoriously. Passionately. Fully. You were not made to settle, you were made to want Jesus' best. He did not give up all so that you would settle for a life less than that!
Our God can calm a raging storm with a word. He heals the lame. He restores sight to the blind. He brings the dead to life. And He wants to take your heart, that has died one tiny piece at a time, and breathe His life into it. He desires disciples who are completely alive!
"And He who is seated on the throne said, 'See! I make all things new'" (Revelation 21:5). Come, fall at the feet of your God. Do not do it flippantly. Do not do it just for show or to make yourself feel better. Do it with a deep desire to be made completely new, completely alive. Come to be made strong, and to fall head-over-heels in love with a God who is strong to save. Come to discover victorious life in Christ. Come; worship; seek the heart of God. And as you lose yourself in His beautiful heart for you, yours will be raised to life. And life will, again, go on -- but it will go on with a strength and power that you could never have imagined.
