The Process

Fresh Start Process: Welcome

What freedom do you need today? What’s keeping you chained? Maybe it’s an addiction, betrayal, grief, feeling hopeless in a relationship, or even distorted thoughts rolling around in your own heart and mind. In Proverbs 4:23 God says, “Above all else guard your heart, for from it flow the well-springs of life.” If YOUR heart was the only wellspring or drinking source from which others could drink, how “healthy” would they be? A sobering question, isn’t it? Whose heart hasn’t been affected by someone or something? Even if your wellspring has become “polluted“ with unforgiveness or bitterness, you can still have a “Fresh Start” for your heart! True freedom has no limit to what’s available. Join us for a Six-Part journey in helping you process the issues of your heart. This series will help you be free from your past, thrive (not just survive) in the present, and reap the benefits of a hope-filled future! Freedom is available for you, today! To get started, download the Processing the Issues of Your Heart Booklet, and follow along as we begin this series with the Part 1 Process Video.

Part 1 | Offense, Hurt, and Loss

Psalm 26:2

What happened? Who hurt you? What have you lost? Let’s start with your story. Your journey of freedom begins first with a step of honesty. In this part of the process, identify one significant area of hurt, offense, or loss that is hindering your life. Whether it was an event that happened recently or something from when you were a child, no detail is too small. No pain is too great. Choose one person or event to process.

Part 2 | Affect

Psalm 139:23

What is in your heart? How have you been affected by this hurt, offense or loss? Take some time to pause and consider what your thoughts have been toward this person or event. What have your thoughts been toward yourself? Toward God? What have your feelings been? Or, have you been numbing them for so long you don’t even feel anymore? Describe your thoughts and feelings in detail. Present feelings are indicators of past pain.

Part 3 | Response

Psalm 139:24

How have you responded to your pain? What have you said or done in response to the hurt, loss, or offense you experienced? Have you made any internal agreements or decisions because of your pain? (Examples: I will never be hurt again. He will always be that way. I would never do that to anyone.)  This is about full disclosure. What has your part been?  

Part 5 | Forgive

Matthew 18:21–35

It’s easy to think someone “owes'' us, because they hurt us. While we are waiting to be “repaid,” our hearts remain chained. Forgiveness doesn’t excuse what they did. Forgiveness cancels the debt, so we can be free. In order to forgive, we must first be forgiven. Ask God to forgive you first for any of your wrong attitudes, responses or decisions. Then, you are ready to forgive those who have hurt or offended you. Forgive just like you were forgiven. 

Part 6 | Release

Romans 12:16–21, 1 Peter 2:23, Psalm 55:22–23

Release the person (the one you have forgiven) to the Lord. This painful situation is no longer yours. Let God handle the situation or the person(s) involved. Release is getting the space in your heart back that was once leased out to pain. Take this person or painful circumstance off your hook, and place the person on God’s hook. It’s now His to deal with. Be willing to pray for the person. Be forgiven. Be forgiving. Be free to be the person you were created to be! Forgiven, Forgiving and Free!

Fresh Start Process: Your Next Steps

Congratulations!! You have walked through the first of what we hope to be many processes in your journey to freedom. There is a reason we break this process into parts and not steps that you check off your list. Simply put, it is a process of obedience to the Lord leading to freedom. Fresh Start is the gospel applied to your heart. This process is designed to be a tool in your tool belt for the rest of your life. So, what can you do next? Get in a group! In-person or online. *Check for availability. Begin another process! Receive more freedom through Fresh Start’s resources. Or, maybe you need to connect with someone to ask more questions about your first process. No matter where you are on your journey, we hope that you will stay connected, and that this is the beginning of an exciting and worthwhile journey in becoming who you were created to be. 

The Ultimate Fresh Start: You Can Be Forgiven

It takes courage to continue to step forward into the necessary, but unknown parts of your story and journey. Up until this point in your life, you may have held back parts or all of your heart from fully surrendering to God. So, we want to extend an invitation to you. You can be forgiven!  Please consider praying the prayer described on the last page of your Fresh Start booklet titled, You Can Be Forgiven! As you follow these prompts in faith, trust Jesus to do the work only He can do, redeeming and cleansing your heart and making you His son or daughter. We are excited for all that God is doing in you, and are trusting the Holy Spirit to bear witness to your spirit that you are now in the family of God. And, as you have been forgiven, now you can forgive, because the Forgiver has moved inside you by His Spirit. For more on being TRULY FORGIVEN, please go to http://www.stepuptolife.com