“But I will restore you to health
and heal your wounds, declares the Lord.”
Jeremiah 30:17 (NIV)
I do a volunteer ministry, once a week, at the hospital I retired from. One day I walked into a room with an older lady lying in her bed, who looked very frail. She had a bandage that protruded from the left side of her head, and IV fluids going into both of her bruised arms.
I offered to say a prayer for her to get well, but she quickly replied, “I am well.” Her response stunned me, so to be sure I understood, I asked again, “You are well, so you don’t need prayer ?” She agreed and nodded, so I left.
She was the image of frailty, with that bandage on her head and IV’s in both arms, and yet she claimed to be well. Maybe she was thinking of a different kind of wellness, but to see her say she that, was like looking at someone in denial.
Whatever the reason for refusing a prayer, she caused me to think. I began to wonder if I have ever told myself that I am well, despite being wounded, physically, emotionally or mentally.
I immediately remembered a time when I was once physically injured, although in denial at first, after an ice skating accident when I was thirteen. I loved ice skating, and my best friend and I used to free skate regularly, at an indoor ice skating rink, called Rainbow Arena in Chicago.
One Saturday, while we were skating, I slipped and fell on the ice, but wasn’t hurt at all. My friend saw my clumsy fall and we both burst into laughter at the same time. I didn’t get back up right away, as we continued to laugh. While I was sitting on the ice, neither of us noticed a woman skating backwards, who was heading towards me, and then slammed into me. The woman and I both exchanged apologies, I assured her I was fine, and she skated away.
I started to get up, but felt a sharp pain and weakness in my left leg.
I managed to walk toward the restroom, assuming I was probably bruised from the impact of her bumping into me. I never looked at my leg until I reached the restroom. When I finally looked down, I saw a hole in my left thigh, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter, that tore through my pants.
I never thought the back end of an ice skate blade could cause such a stab wound. I received stitches at the nearest emergency room, to close the ugly wound, and it healed.
I am still surprised at how long it took me, before looking down at my leg. Though I felt pain, I was in a temporary state of denial, during those few minutes, while walking with a stab wound in my leg. I told myself, I am well, just like that little lady in the hospital.
I wonder if God sees people walking around, repressing their pain, until they look within and realize they need inner healing. He sees people walking and limping through the pain of their emotional wounds, which He wants to heal with total wholeness.
Many years later, as an adult, after experiencing different problems, I remember a time in prayer, when I brought all the things that ever wounded me, emotionally and spiritually, to Jesus. I recognized and embraced my vulnerabilities, for the first time, recalling not only who or what hurt me, but who I hurt, and then I surrendered it all to Jesus, instead of trying to walk around in pain and denial.
It was a season of reset for me, and I believe God meant for us to have more than one of those seasons of reset and renewal in our lives. When we pause to look inside of ourselves, and give Jesus all that wounded us and kept us down, He heals, forgives and assures us that it’s been nailed to the cross. In His love, He takes our hand, and raises us up again.
When I recall that whole ice skating accident, I know now, that the cause of it, was not the lady who didn’t see me, or that I fell, but that I stayed down too long. Falling is one thing, but staying down is a choice.
Because Jesus loves us more than we realize, He constantly invites us to rise again, just as He did. He knows all about our inner mental, emotional and spiritual wounds, which we carry around inside. As we look within, we bring Him our pain, our shame and our wounds, and He gives us healing, mercy and spiritual wholeness, in exchange.
Lord, as we come to you with all of our inner wounds, we thank you for the healing that restores true wholeness, that we may be well, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Amen
