I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.
– I Corinthians 5:11, NLT
Some bridges need burning!
I am thinking of those bridges to demonstratively abusive individuals who refuse to stop hurting you. They refuse to stop sinning against you.
Don’t eat with them. Burn the bridge.
-This might mean ending a “friendship” with someone who believes he or she knows more than you do about honoring God amidst infidelity discovery.
-It might mean walking away from a local church community and/or a pastor who does not “get” that he or they are being spiritually abusive and hurtful.
-This might mean walking away after giving a long-time “friend” one more chance to change via a rebuke over his or her hurtful words in regards to your infidelity-destroyed marriage.
-It might mean writing off the former in-laws as lost to the divorce and accepting that they will never choose to hold their own cheating child accountable for destroying his or her family.
I don’t know what it means for you.
But remember:
Some bridges need burning!
Somehow, we have gotten all twisted over God’s intentions for us. We–I did, at least–internalize these messages that tell us that we have to accept abusive treatment and never, ever burn a bridge. We think cutting out people from our lives is so very un-Christian. This is not a healthy or godly message.
Clearly, the Apostle Paul wasn’t afraid to burn a bridge or two when it came to people with stubborn sin issues.
That is not to say burning a bridge is easy or always fun. It is painful to grieve the loss of what we had hoped was a loving and supportive relationship that just isn’t.
A surgery is not painless; but that says nothing about its necessity. Sometimes we need to cut someone out of our lives to be healthy.
Some bridges NEED burning!
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*A version of this post appeared previously.
