Some wounds clear up pretty quickly, but there are wounds of the heart and soul which take time, introspection, insight, and understanding to resolve. When a friend is surprisingly brutal or your left with a cruel betrayal, it leaves a contusion of the heart which doesn’t easily fade away, and i don’t know about you, but in my life, things have been said and done which make those hurts and bruises just hard to get past sometimes. When someone, especially a friend of many years, repeatedly scoffs and belittles you, it hard to get past their projected moral superiority sometimes. More than a few people carry those bruises to their grave, nursing their wounded hearts along, sometimes for years, only to show up later in life as bitterness, lack of trust, unbelief, or even in some cases, depression, isolation, and anger. How do we deal with that stuff?
i know a trauma nurse or two who have worked in the ER of the local hospital, and they’ll tell anyone dealing with physical wounds, that the healing process, even for physical wounds requires care, time, and attention.
Wounds require binding, and binding takes time. Wounds require the right kind of salve, the right kind of dressing, maybe even a little surgery, and i want to say that Doctor Jesus is the universal expert on dealing with wounds of the heart, mind, and body. We need God’s healing salve and power like never before.
In 1759, Joseph Hart composed a song that has endured the test of time, even to today it speaks to those who are wounded and need binding, beyond a doctor, they need God’s healing attention.
The words are: “Come, ye sinners, poor and needy, Weak and wounded, sick and sore; Jesus ready stands to save you, Full of pity, love and power. Come, you weary, heavy laden, Lost and ruined by the fall; If you tarry till you’re better, You will never come at all. I will arise and go to Jesus, He will embrace me in His arms; In the arms of my dear Savior, O there are ten thousand charms, yes there are ten thousand charms.”
As an example, let’s take getting over divorce, considering in our nation, it is probably one of the most common yet destructive examples of having a wound which needs binding.
Do we really ever get past divorce? i believe it’s like a living death. In an excellent book titled, “Beyond Betrayal” by Jerry Price, he mentions that when someone dies, it is goodnight, not goodbye, our loved one has become separated from the body. But when relational wounds occur, it is as if the person has died, they have not become separated from their body, and our grief goes deeper. There is the feeling of estrangement because the other person is still alive, even though the relationship is dead. In this case it’s not just goodbye, but now it’s good night. There is a wound there which is difficult to get over, if we ever actually get over it, and, i’m convinced, if God is not involved in our healing, our hearts will not actually mend in a way which is prosperous and promotes health and life.
Psalm 34:18, “The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart…”
When most people are physically wounded, blood rushes to the wound area where platelets cross-link to create a plug called clotting in an attempt to stop the bleeding, if any. Over time i’ve learned grief seems to serve no purpose, but yet it is somehow necessary in our process of living past the sadness in our lives. i believe in the same way, when we are emotionally wounded or spiritually wounded, the Lord sends us friends to be kind to us, speaking help and hope, the friends and family sort of “cross-link” making all efforts to stop the emotional bleeding. When a loved one dies, we often see the family gathering and consoling each other… it appears as a type of clotting in an attempt to begin the process of healing a broken heart or mind. If you’ve ever been grieved, or distressed, isn’t it interesting how the Lord puts the thought of you on the heart of your companions, He sends them to console you in your time of sadness. They cross-link with each other and you begin the process of closing the wound. This is the beginning of God’s healing process.
When our hearts and minds are wounded, after the metaphorical bleeding has slowed down, the wounds of our heart need time to process what’s happened to us. Proverbs 4:26, “Ponder the path of your feet, And let all your ways be established.” That word “ponder” in Prov4:26 means to “roll it around in your mind until you come to a conclusion”. Our bodies react similarly. An assessment of what has happened is made and a course of action to repair the physical wound is decided.
i have another observation – people, and i suppose… most all things, when wounded, are highly inclined to withdraw to, what they think is safety. i call it a time of contracting, which is a self-defense mechanism designed by the Lord. Contracting, as in withdrawing, can be observed when physical wounds as well as emotional and/or spiritual wounds have occurred, real or imagined. Unfortunately, it’s also easy once we’ve entered the time of withdrawal, it’s so very easy to simply become a victim as all of darkness hopes we do, encouraging us to replay the scenario of our getting deeply wounded, and there… we remain withdrawn, thinking, if we just don’t go around anymore then we probably won’t be hurt anymore. Yet, playing the victim doesn’t ever seem to resolve our conflict but seems to serve to perpetuate things. i know a fellow who will tell you all day long that he’s an introvert. You know, i’m not buying it. i believe he’s a wounded soul who’s simply withdrawn and relabeled himself as “introvert” so he can feel better about it all.
Similarly, in our bodies, after we’ve been physically wounded, the cells tend to re-organize, and for a time, the wound literally begins to contract, meaning the surface area gets smaller. Anyone who has ever had a skinned knee should be able to relate to this, remembering that after the bleeding stopped and a scab was formed, the wound area contracted and felt tight. It is highly likely we also may have had to put a softening agent on it to encourage the closed wound to be more elastic so as to not impede our motion as much as possible. Our hearts and minds do the same thing. God puts healing salve on our wounds to keep down scar tissue and to encourage the heart wound to remain elastic.
Isaiah 1:6, “From the sole of your foot to the top of your head there is no soundness– only wounds and welts and open sores, not cleansed or bandaged or soothed with oil.” Wounds require binding, and binding takes time.
The Lord has a process for healing our hearts after the wounds of betrayal, and interestingly, it is the same process for our bodies. The Lord is absolutely brilliant!
In wisdom, our bodies, again by design, take an inventory of traumatized systems and begin to follow God’s protocol of healing. Do we not follow the same processes mentally and spiritually? i believe we can see God’s process of healing simply by observing the systems of healing He, in His wisdom, has built into our bodies. Yes, i realize i previously said that, but i believe it is so important we grasp God’s wisdom.
On a side note, healing takes time unless the Lord intervenes, setting us immediately in order… and He does indeed intervene. Luke 4:40, “When the sun was setting, the people brought to Jesus all who had various kinds of sickness, and laying his hands on each one, he healed them.” Some would say, “Well, that was then and this is now.” but i have personally been witness to very similar events when God directly intervened in that the Lord does not immediately heal us, our emotional and spiritual wounds go through another process where what is disorganized by trauma begins to be re-organized, rearranged, cross-linked, and re-aligned. The problem of wounds being healed though, occurs when we stubbornly refuse to allow the wounds to be closed, denying God’s healing process to happen, and we just circle the memory of hurt and betrayal, crying and moaning, which is like having a physical wound that is trying to heal and we keep picking the scab off and keep digging at it. Friends, we must let the Lord do His work taking us to His healing-place. It simply takes time.
Wounds require binding, and binding takes time. While in the healing process, we often have to wait, and waiting is such a difficult thing. i’ve said it before, but here it is again, as much as we have to wait in this life, you’d think we would be better at it. When we have to wait on the Lord to work healing on our wounded hearts, often i hear people say they feel abandoned, or forgotten. Oh, not true, you are not in exile, we are being alone with the Lord so we can be re-organized, and re-focused, in order that He can personally tend our hurt and contusions.
If you are in leadership and have become entangled in sin, for me, i don’t want you to go away, i only want you to sit down for a while, not because you are bad, but so the Lord can heal the contusions of your heart and conscience. Some may want you to leave, but i don’t think it’s always a wise option. We don’t need to kill the wounded, we need to keep them close enough to us that we can help them get over the wounds of their heart and soul. Galatians 6:1, “Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.”
When the Lord takes us aside to His healing place, it is not exile …. it is being alone with the Lord. i understand that it feels like exile, and it’s hard to withstand the feelings of exile no matter how wide our shoulders, or how tough our hearts, …. let us remember they are just feelings.
In His mercy, God takes us to His healing place, for all wounded things must wait to heal; detoxification from the world, sin, and the aberrations of church-ianity simply take time … it is wisdom, and distinctly to our advantage to go with God to His place of rest. John, who wrote the gospel of John, first, second, third John and Revelation, he was the victim of Roman persecution, and an exile on Patmos. It might seem a terrible thing for John to be put in exile, but it would also appear it was God preserving John’s life by taking John aside to Himself.
Let us ask the Lord for, Psalm 51:12, “Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.” Restoration takes time, be patient and let the Lord do what He does so well. My friends, God knows exactly where we are… He takes us out, to bring us in, He brings us down to take us up.
The idea is to “go with God” not “get what you want”. With God good idea, without God, bad idea.
True, the time it takes to be healed has hollow hours in the moment, and true, it feels filled with alot of waiting, it would seem … but while we are there, again it is wisdom, for sure, to remember that our God is not mean … be confident He loves us, and everything He does and wants is for our well being … always. Remember, Jesus said in Luke11:10-12, “For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?” If we look for Him, He will find us, but we do have to be interested enough to go and pursue the Lord.
In my own personal experience i’ve learned that in the seemingly hollow hours of waiting, i have also been alone with God where He wisely bound my wounds and healed my heart and mind.
Isaiah 30:26, “… the LORD binds up the bruise of His people And heals the stroke of their wound.”
If you have been wounded, disgracefully uncovered, or have been beguiled and deceived; if you are sick and sore, know that Jesus stands ready, with hands full of pity, love and power. If you are weary, heavy laden, disillusioned and ruined from the grief and trauma of life, Jesus knows exactly what to do. Even before you got to the place where you couldn’t go another step, exhausted from the lack of water in the heat of the day – weary from the battle… before you got to where you are, God was there waiting for you. He knew what He was going to do before you were ever traumatized, He had the salve and gauze ready, the surgical suite was already prepped, He is just waiting on you to call on His name for help. Rise up and go to Jesus, He is truly the only one who can help any of us. Doctor Jesus knows just the right medication to make you better, mind, body, and spirit.
i believe we are living in the days of Exodus 32 and 1Kings12:28, what i call, the days of the “golden calf”, meaning the days of betrayal, the days of treachery and treason. We are living in, what i call, “Judas days” meaning the days of believers re-deciding that Jesus is not Lord and God, going back on their covenant promises with God. It is the affliction of prodigality. For whatever deceives, whatever disappoints, whatever works to make people putrid before the Lord, whatever the enemy can put out there to wound our hearts and convince us there is no reason to continue … those are these days. Don’t lose heart my family, stand up on your weary feet, lift your trembling arms, call on the name of Jesus and God will stand the mountains on their edge to heal your bruised and wounded hearts.
Let the Lord heal your conscience, your heart, mind, and body. He stands, not sits, but stands ready to help. Wounds require binding, and binding simply takes time. Please friends, let God’s process work in your life. Think about it.
Micah 1:3, “For behold, the LORD is coming out of His place; He will come down And tread on the high places of the earth.” Isaiah 35:3-4, “Lift up the feeble hands, and steady the knees that give way; say to those with fearful hearts, Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you.”
Galatians 6:9-10, “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”
Share your bread with those around you, let us join the Lord in His work of reconciliation. You know, in 2Cor5 Paul says God reconciled us to Himself and also gave us the job of aiding and assisting others to come to reconciliation also.
On a side note, if we don’t begin to address shame, restoration is very difficult.
Be kind to yourselves if you’re not being healed as fast as you think you should be, or if circumstances and seasons aren’t changing quickly enough. God’s process of healing is thorough and righteous. Wounds require binding, and binding simply takes time.
Be strong and courageous this week, go in peace, and let the Lord’s healing process do as He has designed it to do. Go with God and rejoice, for Jesus knows your name, and that’s a good thing, don’t you think? Amen.