Is there anything in your life that causes you to slump? Maybe not physically…but emotionally?
When my brother was a teenager, my mother used to threaten him when he hunched over at the dinner table. “If you don’t sit up,” she would say, “I’m going to buy you a back brace from Sears.” I don’t even know if Sears made back braces then, but it sounded like a pretty good threat to me.
Then I had a son who seemingly grew to six feet overnight. He didn’t know what to do with all that height, so he slumped. I tried my best not to say, “If you don’t sit up, I’m going to buy you a back brace from Sears.”
Then one night my father-in-law took care of it for me. We were measuring and marking various family members’ heights on the dining room door frame. My 77-year-old father-in-law, who was about five-foot ten, stood with his back against the doorframe. Then he took a deep breath and extended his curved back to its fullest upright position. We marked him at six-foot three.
I watched Steven’s eyes grow wide as Papa grew tall. He saw firsthand the difference it made to stand up straight. From that day on, my son stood straight and tall. I have never seen him slump once since then.
There was a woman in the Bible who slumped…not because she wouldn’t stand up straight, but because she couldn’t. Her story is recorded in Luke 13:10-17. “On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, ‘Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.’ Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God” (NIV).
While we might not be able to relate to being bent over physically, most of us can relate to being bent over emotionally. We see feet…people passing by going about their busy lives. We see dirt…the mistakes we’ve made through the years. We see trash…the pain inflicted on us by others and many times by our own poor decisions.
Bent and bowed. The weight of the world on our shoulders. Little by little. Day by day. Bent and bowed because of our color, gender, age, marital state, family history, or financial lack.
Crippled by shame, fear, pain, disappointment, depression, poverty, insecurity, inferiority, inadequacy, broken dreams.
I was crippled for many years. I listened to words from my past telling me I was “ugly,” “not good enough,” and “worthless.” Inferiority, insecurity, and inadequacy were my three closest companions. I didn’t like these three lurking shadows, but they followed me everywhere I went. They stalked me, yelling taunts and accusations that no one heard but me. The more I listened to them, the more emotionally bound I became.
Then one day Jesus called me out of hiding just as surely as He called the crippled woman from the women’s section in the back synagogue in Luke 13. He placed His nail-scarred hand under my chin and lifted my eyes. It was as if He said to me, “Sharon, you are free from your infirmity of feeling less than. Because of the finished work I did for you on the cross, and My spirit in you, you are more than enough to do what I’ve called you to do and be who I’ve called you to be.”
That’s what He’s saying to you today. No more slumping in self-doubt or hunching in halfhearted conviction, but instead standing up to the full stature of a confident woman who knows she is equipped by God, empowered by the Holy Spirit, and enveloped in Jesus Christ. A daughter of Abraham by grafting. A child of God by choosing.
Is there something in your life that is crippling your spirit? Unforgiveness? Bitterness? Resentment? Guilt? Sorrow? Worry? Regret? Comparison? If so, cut it loose, cast it off, throw it away. Whatever has been holding you back from lifting your head…Jesus has come to set you free! Lift up your head, dear sister. He has called you by name. You are His.
Dear Jesus, thank You for setting me free! Today, I choose to walk in that freedom and to never be held captive by emotional chains again! In Your Name, Amen.
What is Jesus calling you to be free of today?
Read the entire story of the woman with the bent back in Luke 13:10-17. What impresses you most about Jesus’ interactions and reactions?
If you’ve ever felt less than because of your past, your present circumstances, or your gender as a woman then my book, Never Less Than: Living Empowered, Esteemed, and Equipped When the World Tells You Otherwise is just for you! This is a message that your daughters need to hear. Click here to learn more. (This book is a revised edition of How Jesus Broke the Rules to Set You Free.)
Click here for a FREE download of 25 Ways Jesus Honored Women.
Comments 27
Dear Sharon,Thank you for your story. It is my favorite story as I have a dramatic case of scoliosis. I am 59 and had never had it until after back surgery 3 years ago. It is very painful and I cannot walk upright without a walker. I pray everyday for a healing miracle! I know God hears my prayers. This is the 4th time this week I have heard this message and he is telling me to suffer no more!! Thank you Jesus !!! Blessings to you, Elizabeth Crocker
Dear Sharon,Thank you for your story. It is my favorite story as I have a dramatic case of scoliosis. I am 59 and had never had it until after back surgery 3 years ago. It is very painful and I cannot walk upright without a walker. I pray everyday for a healing miracle! I know God hears my prayers. This is the 4th time this week I have heard this message and he is telling me to suffer no more!! Thank you Jesus !!! Blessings to you, Elizabeth Crocker
Author
My ministry partner, Mary Southerland, has it as well. I know it is painful.
Sharon, my mom bought my sister one of those braces from Sears. They do exist…and it caused even more fussing at my house. I vividly remember my sister’s outbursts and the confrontation.
Our words hurt others. We need to stand tall and ask God to help us with our words. I am glad He heals.❤️
Author
So they still make them???? Oh my. Nightmares!
Thankyou sharon.This devotion is God sent.it targets me
Thank Sharon! I have been feeling less than because my prayer time and devotions have fallen short of what I used to do… Today, I start fresh, I start over, I stand up spiritually!!!
Author
You go girl!
I have emotional scars from the paths I chose to walk on that were far apart from God’s best for me. I feel less than for what I did during that time in my life. I want to be free from shame and regret. I need to stop holding on to that and receive God’s forgiveness.
Author
Oh Gina. I think you would get a lot out of my book When You Don’t Like Your Story. That’s one of the main reaso I wrote it.
Gina-
Jesus came here to pay for our sins- mine and yours- NO MATTER what it is, sweetheart. Every accusation you hear is a lie! That’s how satan deceives us by accusing us of our own sin, as if it isn’t cleansed by Christ’s Blood. His Blood is still STRONG ENOUGH to cover our sin. God knows our hearts and judges our spirits. The deceiver sees our flesh- so he will always use it against us. But it’s NOT TRUE! I’m praying you get to truly SEE yourself through His eyes. He adores you and has been with you, no matter how far you wandered. It has pained Him to watch you suffer. He is that small voice that has brought you out from there. He’s powerful enough to heal your wounds and make them your strongest weapon against satan— your testimony of deliverance and resurrection in Christ, that will save another woman who has walked a rocky path and thinks she is unforgivable.. That robe of shame is NOT YOURS. Throw it off and don’t look back. As His heirs, we are children of the King. Rock your crown, sister! All Glory and Praise be to God!!
In the story If the woman with the bent back in the synagogue, I love how Jesus seeks her out of all the people there and chooses to heal her on that day. It’s comforting to know that Jesus seeks us out too.
Thank you for this Word. It’s amazing to see how the enemy has used the same tactics to cause so many of us to “slump”. I’m aggravated that I still fall prey to this. I pray we recognize this bondage and allow the healing power of Jesus to break us free once and for all. Thank you Sharon Jaynes for your transparency.
Author
I know! We all do it. But then we have to have a little talk with ourselves to tell us to straighten up!
Thank you for this Word this morning. But I have a different emotional slump-I lost my husband and best friend in October last year and it has taken quite the toll on my life. I no longer feel that I have a purpose in this life. My purpose was to be a good wife yet God took that purpose from me all too soon. Today is our 16 year anniversary…
Author
I’m so sorry. It will come.
I had a serious bout of Covid in September and was in the hospital for 3 weeks. I’m struggling to overcome anxiety that came with the illness. This message was for me: “Lift your head up! You have purpose!”
God bless!
I was seven years old and needed help zipping up my chicken costume. I was probably one of many kids who needed help that evening, just minutes from going on stage for our end of year play. I’m sure Mrs. H. was stressed beyond belief. Yet her words to me when I asked for help (“Your so stupid. Can’t you do anything right?”) are still with me today (I am 58). Over the years, those words have haunted, taunted, and made me doubt my abilities in any number of things (career, marriage, motherhood, etc.). Thank you so much for your enriching words. I often wonder who I would be today if I had heard more enriching words and fewer disparaging words.
Author
Oh my goodness! The stupid person was the teacher who said that to a precious child. Have you read the book, Enough?
This should be a lesson to all… be careful and use your words wisely! Lift everyone up… we all need to hear good and positive words. Especially with all the negativity in the world! Speak kindly to others, and to ourselves!
Thank you. I did not remember that part of Luke. I needed to read/hear that today. Thank you for sharing. My prayer is that I stand up straight in my walk with God.
Sharon,
I am all those things and probably more that crippled you. You write… “Is there something in your life that is crippling your spirit? Unforgiveness? Bitterness? Resentment? Guilt? Sorrow? Worry? Regret? Comparison? If so, cut it loose, cast it off, throw it away.”
Ok. But. How??? I read GIG every day, I’ve read the GIG books and devotionals and yet my head doesn’t grasp what my heart does. I’m stuck in the mire. It’s all so encouraging and uplifting. And then… I get out of bed. I need more than grace and mercy. I need a miracle.
Karen
Dear Karen
I understand , and I also know that reading devotions , books and etc …. Are great tools for our walk. But there is nothing quite like reading Gods holy word… it is sharper then a two edged sword. It pierces our hearts, and gives guidance, strength, wisdom and truth. Gods holy word and prayer everyday is the best thing you could do for yourself. Believe me, I know! I love all the devotions too!
Pray breakthrough , in Jesus❤️
Thank you Darlene.
I do read my Bible and study it. And listen to sermon after sermon. Every day is a battle to pull myself out the hole I’m in, taking blame for everything, wondering where I went wrong as a parent to a son who doesn’t care to be a part of our family, Where did I miss the boat when I was raised as an MK and a PK, and can’t get my kids inside a church for even a Christmas Eve or Easter Sunday. Failure follows me. Praying that whatever lesson I’m not learning, God would smack me in the head with it so I can have joy once more.
Yelling at the Evil one to get out of my head and begging God to clear my head of negativity. And yet…
I need my GIG family to lay hands on me and pray over me. I long for peace.
I need a miracle too. I relate to what you are saying. My head or my heart doesn’t grasp what it takes to put the truths I am reading into action.
Yes Laura!! I’ve known it since birth. I don’t take it for granted. But when troubles back me up against a wall, how do I put those truths and promises into action so I can rise above my circumstances. I have the instruction book, my Bible, but I need the application direction notes to process, get past and move on from the mire I’m stuck in. Like a jeep stuck in the mud, during rainy season, in the Congo, where I was raised…it takes a village to lift it and get back in the road. I need to be lifted up by my village of sisters so I can get back to being a blessing and taking care of those God places in my path. A miracle…
I used to be slumped because of my childhood traumas. I was molested and have felt inferior, inadequate, ashamed, and victimized. Growing up I felt like the scapegoat in the family. But God has been good to me. I went to a Seventh Day Adventist School where they taught the Bible. It was part of the curriculum. I’ve had teachers who encouraged me and helped me. I really had low self esteem. But one day I felt God speaking to me. It gave me a desire to accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I went to China on a scholarship by force and against my will. I got sick, diagnosed with schizophrenia. I thought God left me but He was there all that time. Today I am where I am because of Jesus. He has Blessed me with a church, church family, a good job, and friends. I’m grateful to Jesus because He never left me. It was Jeremiah 29:11 that literally made me see God as a loving God. It was like a veil lifted. I saw the truth. Jesus is the truth.