Bruised Reeds and Smoldering Wicks

" A bruised reed he will not break and a smoldering wick (flax) he will not snuff out" Matt.12:20

Bruised and Broken ? Feeling useless ? God has not forgotten about us.
Reeds were used to make flutes by Jewish children. When they were broken they were discarded and thrown away. A smoldering wick -was a ancient bowl of olive oil with a little fax floating in it for a wick. As long as the lamp had enough oil, the wick would soak up the oil and serve as a catalyst for turning it into light. But when the oil was gone, the flax would begin to burn. Flax doesnt give much light- just fills the room with smoke and stinks up the room. the solution would be to throw out the smoking flax and start over with fresh oil and a fresh wick. It take a lot of patience to make a smoldering wick burn bright again. God has the patience to stick with us when every one else has given up. He certainly looks beyond our faults and sees our needs. (Glen Penton)


Hope you will join us in August for our second recovery retreat- this year at Bair Lake Bible Camp in Jones, Mich. Our retreat speaker will be Rev. Haman Cross- Senior Pastor of Rosedale Park Baptist Church in Detroit, Mich . Our theme: "Bruised Reeds and Smoldering Wicks" We will have more info as we get closer or call us -1-888-AMI-HEAL

Tim Cross

Ananepho Ministries

This is from Dale and Juantia Ryan- Christian Recovery Network:

Our healer is gentle
He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.Isaiah 42:2-3
Cheer up! Snap out of it! I thought you would be better by now! What's your problem?!
When we have been badly bruised, we have an increased sensitivity to noise. Comments like these - which many of us have heard even from people who genuinely love and care for us - are a kind of 'noise' during recovery. Because we have been bruised, these comments often feel like 'shouts' or 'raised voices in the street.' They are a kind of public shaming because of our inadequacies and neediness. And this feels like it will do us in - like the tiny recovery candle that we have just managed to light is being snuffed out by the wind of the shout.
And so when God responds with gentleness we are surprised. No shouting. No yelling. No hurrying to get better. Instead, we find compassion and tenderness. Our Healer sees that we are like a bruised reed. He will not break us. He will patiently restore us. He sees we are like a smoldering wick, ready to go out. Others might give up on us. But he will work with us until we burn brightly again.
Gentleness. Patience. Persistence. We need all three. These are the gifts offered to us by our healing God.
I am bruised, Lord. I am smoldering. And, I am so accustomed to shouting. It's so noisy that I don't always hear your voice. I don't expect your gentle ways. I expect you to yell, to be impatient. I expect you to give up on me. But you do not yell. You are not impatient. You do not give up. Thank you. Gentle Healer, teach me to be gentle. Teach me to be compassionate with myself and with others. Amen.
Copyright 1991 Dale and Juanita Ryan