When it comes to healing, I think most would agree it's a good thing to do. We like to associate healing with positive words: Hope. Resilience. Strength. Wellness. People who have been healed from something often use positive words: Restored. Repaired. Renewed.
Sure, being healed is amazing! But the process of healing? That usually calls for more effort than I'd prefer and takes way longer than I think it should. Words I might use to describe healing? Inefficient. Uncomfortable. Painful. Exhausting. Difficult.
I'll admit I'm my own worst enemy when it comes to proper healing in my life, on a regular basis. I'm impatient. I'm also an introverted, highly independent, self-sufficient person who does not value needing to be healed from anything. It's not surprising to learn, then, that the path to healing in my life looks more like a giant, chaotic hairball than the neat upward diagonal line of progress I'd prefer.
When I broke my foot in high school and used crutches for a soft 6 of the hard 8 weeks the doctor ordered, I knew it was my fault my foot didn't heal properly, or within the expected time frame.
With spiritual wounds, I know that reading the Bible is at the top of the list of recommended ways to figure it out, and still I struggle to actually do it. The irony is not lost on me. Even when I know something would be helpful, healing even (read: to my own benefit)—I still dread the process often enough to try and skip it. AND, skipping it is NOT a sustainable or recommended plan.
For better or worse, healing will happen whether we choose it or not. Our bodies, minds, and spirits are resilient, hard-wired to self-correct, to fix or minimize whatever problem is in the way.
If you get a paper cut and do nothing, chances are the skin around the cut will close and scab over without much effort. Sure, it may get infected. There may be a scar in its place. It will be sore to touch for longer than you want. The injured skin may never look the same again. Now, imagine that same scenario on a larger scale, with decades of injuries compounding into a cacophony of collateral damage.
If you aren't aware, or choose not to tend the healing process fully, your body will continue making hasty executive decisions to move on, and you may have serious issues with the consequences later.
"But I don't want to! That sounds hard!"
So?
I can do hard things! The Bible tells me so. The past has shown me. Whenever I?m busy sabotaging my own healing, I recall what a sweet lady once said to me: "Honey, I can only do my best. After that, it's up to God to bless it!"
Then, I remember Joshua 1:5: "...I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you." God knows! He's got this. He will not fail me—is not failing me—even when I am failing repeatedly and in spectacular fashion. What a relief, right? Thanks be to God!
Krystol Wheeler and husband, Brandon, joined South Main in 2014. They are members of the Journey Sunday School class, and proud parents of Owen. Krystol has taught Sunday School and loves her current role in leadership for The 527 Tribe.
