Fresh Bread
      # 7

TENDER HEARTS

      It was Valentine’s Day; a day when sweethearts declare their love with cards, candy, flowers…and special greetings. All I was desiring from my husband was that he would hug me tight and hold me until my pain went away…to seal those cracks in my broken heart. Just hold me until I could get well, then I would be strong enough to walk in the strength of his love until the next time I might be hurt. The faith would grow that he would always be there to hug me, reassure me of his love for me, and I would feel strong again.
      Tears continued to stream down my face as I sat on the side of my bed trying to decide whether to read the Bible first, or write. Oh, those tears. How I fought them. I remembered the movie Brave Heart with Mel Gibson. That’s what I always aimed for…to be brave. One thing about being brave is, that you don’t hurt when you are brave.
      I was standing in prayer against that old spirit of “self-pity” when the Holy Spirit gave me a word. He said: “TENDER HEART.”
      I thought about the vines in the Bible that had such tender grapes. (Song of Solomon 2:13). Jesus is the Vine and His true grapes are tender.
      At this time He was specifically showing me that women were created with “tender hearts”. Often they fight this as much as men and boys do. But, as in all of God’s plans, there has always been a purpose for women to have “tender hearts”. Little girls usually cry more than little boys. Their feelings are hurt by things that just pass over a little boy’s head. There is a purpose for this too.
      As God created man and woman, although each has degrees of tenderness and toughness, the woman is much more tender. She is more easily hurt and crushed.
      Only Jesus, the True Vine, can give her the strength she needs when Satan finds many ways to step on her…bringing forth her tears only to be turned into sweet wine for her Lord. Her Lord collects all her tears in a bottle. (Psalms 56:8).
       A “tender heart” may often be confused with self-pity. Accept the “tender heart” that God gave you. Don’t let it grow hard. Keep it soft with tears when necessary. Let the tears flow, cleansing and washing, keeping your heart tender. God planned you so. And each time you feel the need to cry, see yourself as a tender grape of His Vine…just keeping your heart tender. Your tears are representing the sweet wine of :

His
Tender Grapes.