Mended {Think On These Things}

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It started about twenty years ago...the breaking of me. Anxiety, depression, and toxic relationships left me a devastated woman, and the very things I never wanted to happen in my life did. The brokenness of my relationships broke me. I would never be the same. For about three years now, I have been healing. There are days I think I am whole. There are times when I am sure I am more broken than before. Healing is a roller coaster ride in which you hope at the end you come out alive.

There is this other aspect of brokenness and healing we don't like to talk about...we need the brokenness to become whole. You see, for me, the circumstances I never wanted to happen in my life were the very thing I needed to become who God wants me to be, the woman that I am not. Fear free (or at least not debilitated by it). Brave with boundaries. More healthy in my interactions with humans. All of these descriptions are NOT ME, but God decided to use brokenness and healing to make me into what I am not.

So this month, let's focus on the God that mends us, the One whose wounds heal us, the Great Physician. Maybe your breaking is different from mine as we don't all break in the same places, but the concept of healing is the same. Healing changes us into who we are meant to be. So grab a pen and a journal and let's "Think on These Things" and explore how we are mended.

And if you are in the midst of being mended? See the end of this post with links to my series, Hope and Healing.

You can download the file here.

If you would like all the Think on These Things verses or want to know more about it, click here.

Instagram

During the month I try to post my thoughts on the verses on Instagram. If you would like to follow me you can find me here. Also, if you are posting your own thoughts there please use the hashtag #thinkonthesethings. I would love to read how God speaks to you!!

Resources

There are many ways you can use these verses. You can read and meditate on them. You can write them out as you meditate on them. You can read them and then write about them in a journal or journaling Bible. Here are some of the items I use...

A single column journaling Bible...

ESV Single Column Journaling Bible (TruTone, Chestnut, Leaves Design)
ESV Single Column Journaling Bible (Black)
ESV Single Column Journaling Bible (Brown, Flap with Strap)

Some highlighters {These are my absolute favorites!}...

Eco Highlighter Pencils - Set of 5 Colors

Black pens...

Black Ink Pen Set

I love these journals that lay flat...easier to write in!

Studio Oh! Deconstructed Journals

Resources on Healing

If you are struggling through the process of healing I have a series on my blog called Hope and Healing in which I wrote thirty-one posts about being broken and mended. Here's a quick look at some of the topics...

Slow Down to Heal
Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Five Ways to Make Peace with Your Past
Finding Your Voice
Books Lists on Healing

Click here to see the whole series.

And then there is this...

 Ann Voskamp's book releases tomorrow, and it fits our theme for the month of November perfectly. I had the privilege to read an advanced copy as I am on the launch team for her book. In it, Ann discusses what to do with "your one broken heart". Not to be missed! You can find it HERE. Also, there is a DVD study coming out in December on the book. Check it out here.