The Matthew Ministry
In Matthew's gospel Jesus's apostles ask him why he must always speak in parables to some of the people . Jesus explains that these people's heart is dull and they are hard of hearing and they will not hear him and turn to him to be healed. In other words, they have hardened thier hearts. Because of this they cannot understand the message of Jesus. They are blind, they do not hear and they do not understand. Jesus goes on to explain that if they would turn thier heart to Him, he would heal them. When we get angry or hurt we often harden out hearts to others and to God. We will not listen to others or to God. Jesus promises if we would turn our hearts to God, He would heal us.
Examples - Being hurt by a brother, father or cousin and then having a hard heart towards all men.
Personal Story - Shelly grew up with a shaming father who was critical of her. As an adult she has quit several jobs with male bosses when they gave her feed back that seemed critical even though she knew they were trying to help her.
Key Points to Remember:
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When we get hurt and harden out hearts, it becomes hard to let go of the past.
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Hurst are on a continuum from experiences of feelings left out, not important, bullying to physical and or sexual abuse or worse.
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When we harden our hearts, we begin to shut people out.