God Is Able… So Why Do I Resist His Help?

First of all, we all know, deep down or otherwise that God is capable of it all. He is infinite in His power, wisdom, & resources… so when I determine to respond to life in my own power & fall short in that while refusing His help, that is my sin fleshed out in my pride.

God’s been convicting my heart of this fact over the last few years—that when I refuse His help even for healing trauma/hurts—it’s actually sin.

Sometimes it’s easier to not ask for God’s help. Even when I hate the pain, I sometimes hate the idea of “letting someone get away with something by moving on” even more, or I find comfort in feeling justified to not let something go… & I sometimes even begin to wrap my identity around it, thinking, “Well, I’m just not the type of person to _______.”

I resist His help because I oftentimes think I am handling things “just fine” or “as well as can be expected.”

Hurts… Well… HURT

We all have hurts, whether it’s scars from bullying at school that we sort of subconsciously internalize in the back of our minds as adults, or whether they are hurtful words someone we care about once said recklessly that we now rehearse whenever an event triggers those hurts, or whether we make choices based on survival mode in reaction to something wrong or painful done to us or that we were subjected to.

And when all those types of things happen, it is only natural for me to develop a trigger response to help protect me from getting hurt again, disappointing others, embarrassing myself further, feeling like I don’t fit, or whatever the fear may be for that particular circumstance.

Hurts hurt & when they do… I do what I know to protect myself from further hurt.

The Natural Response Versus the Response with God’s Help

And it feels natural, these responses, because they are my natural defense mechanisms, often subconscious even… I am not consciously aware of & choosing to do it my way over God’s or anything like that… my brain just comes up with whatever feels like the best safety protocol & does it without much thought on my end.

This same sort of defense mechanism that we all employ in one way or another, doesn’t feel sinful or rebellious.

And, in some cases, in a way—it isn’t… It’s what we do with them that matters.

When We Learn God’s Way, We Have to Make a Choice Regarding Our Natural Response Versus His Help for His Way

But then, we learn God’s Truth about a matter. I hear Him say not to hold bitterness or whatnot & then I have a choice to make at that point—do I continue just reacting in my natural response to the situation?

Or do I take God’s commands/Truth & submit my response to His help & healing?

That’s where the sin generally becomes solid sin in those situations, because while I didn’t mean to be sinful in feeling bitter about a situation—it was just my natural, gut response to the pain trigger—once I hear from Him that I shouldn’t be bitter & that He is able to heal the brokenhearted, I have to choose to let Him… to do things HIS way over my gut reaction way.

I Often Choose Wrongly

So, how does that look in reality?

Typically, whatever my gut response is happens first, out of habit.

Then, I feel His nudge & a reminder of His Word about how I ought to handle it.

And then, I usually fight it, feeling justified in how I feel I want to react about it.

And eventually, I realize my way just seems to make me more miserable & I desperately ask God to help me see a different way… to help me do things HIS way, even if that may seem impossible to me in that particular circumstance.

My Triggered Response Often Becomes Mingled with My Identity As “Someone Who Just _____”

Sometimes my trigger responses become part of my identity & it seems impossible to change because “I am just that way,” or “that’s just how my heart handles that type of thing,” or, “that’s just what I’ve found helps me.”

It becomes so engrained in my gut response that it seems inseparable from ME. I begin to identify as a person who does whatever it is in that type of situation.

So, coming across God’s Word about whatever such things, can sometimes feel like a personal attack against me—like I can’t be ME… like I have to be FAKE to please God… like my NATURAL response or feeling is WRONG–& it is, because it’s led by my human flesh versus the wisdom of God.

But my identity is not in how I have subconsciously trained myself to deal with whatever trigger or trauma may present itself… it is in trusting God to know better than I do & that He can handle it better than I can–if I let Him help me His way.

I Need to Let Him Decide Because He Never Gets It Wrong

When God makes me aware of a poor way of handling something or of the fact that I am forming my identity around something that doesn’t actually need to define me, I feel attacked because it throws into question everything I think I know about myself & how to handle hurts.

And when what I know seems under attack… my comfort zone… that is usually where the rebellion & refusal to admit a need for change happens—the sin of it—because my pride tells me “that’s just who I am & I can’t help it,” while God says I shouldn’t determine what I should be, but rather let Him decide instead.

Our Benevolent King of Kings

But God always & only wants our good. Everything He does & commands centers around His love & goodness toward all of us. He is a very benevolent, almighty King—it may not always be the easy or comfortable choice—but it is most definitely always for our good.

I shouldn’t question or doubt Him. I shouldn’t rebel & make my refusal to accept His help turn into a sinful response.

I SHOULD just OBEY Him.

It’s not easy for me, I admit. I want to vet everything He asks of me, checking it out before I obey—pride is the root of every sin we commit, because it essentially says we think we know better.

I need to be willing to take my gut response, my “identity” that I have established, my trauma triggers, etc. & be WILLING TO SUBMIT THEM TO HIM.

A Prayer of Repentance & for Help with a Willingness to Accept His Help:

“God, please forgive me. I’m sorry that I cling to “my identity” or the “it’s just who I am” thoughts versus trusting You 100% ALWAYS know better than me. Help me submit those reactions to You. Help me not wrap my identity around anything besides what You created in me—Your Truth versus how I feel it ought to be. Please forgive me for refusing Your help sometimes & going on my gut versus Your limitless wisdom. Help me to better submit to Your help. Help me be more aware of when I need to make that choice. Help me choose to trust You to help me & to be willing to BE helped versus staying in my “understandable” bitterness or other wrong choices. You know best. Always. Help me to better trust that & to better submit to Your will, Your way, Your help, & Your healing. I love You. In Jesus’ name, I pray: AMEN.”

Ask Him for the HOW & for the HELP to Do It

So, if you feel trapped by a sin that “you can’t help or control,” when God says to do otherwise… don’t refuse His help.

Ask Him to help you see HOW to change & to walk you through it, trusting His will over your own.

Don’t let Satan deceive you into thinking you have to be that way, knowing that it’s God who can take your brokenness & make you whole.

Shine HOPE by letting God in & letting Him help you through whatever it may be.

Coming Next Week

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