Well, let me start with saying I disagree with the title of my blog. Yes I realize I am the one who titled it - and - NO it is not some kind of bait and switch maneuver to reel you in. I suppose more accurately I would describe my blog title as just not being entirely wrong just being an "unfinished title" or perhaps a "beginning without an end" .
This days blog, sufficient to say, is my feeble attempt to "finish the title" or put an "end to the beginning" not only to my blog's title but at the same time lay to rest this silly (incorrect) age old thought that all we need to do is "let time pass and eventually all our wounds will heal."
Can I just say that time IS important in the healing process. This is true. I will not deny time it's place. I can't recount the number of times the Spirit of the Lord has brought to mind Ecclesiastes 3. (there is a time for everything under the sun).
Today I would like to share with you what the Lord has been showing me specifically about wounds.
I am home right now. I had surgery 7 days ago. I had been sick for awhile. Probably for about 3 or so years I had been having symptoms. They had progressively been getting worse. Nothing I couldn't handle. There was pain, yes. Again, nothing I couldn't deal with. I have a very high pain tolerance. My life is busy. CRAZY busy. Emotionally and with work, family. I didn't have time to think about myself. Just about 6 months ago my symptoms became unbearable. To me. (To everyone else this is the first they heard of my not feeling well.) So started my trips to the doctors and surgeons. I ended up having same day surgery 7 days ago. To have mass amount of scar tissue removed from all around the inside of abdomen. Apparently it was so bad that the adhesion's had connected my organs to the outside wall of my stomach. It was a twisted mess. Thank the Lord the surgeon said the surgery was a success and he was able to remove the adhesions successfully. Yay!
All better and ready to face the world and all of it's challenges again!!! Right?
Ummm. Not so fast Skippy.
Yeah. I tell ya. I went in and came out thinking okay. Back to work in 3-4 days. The doc says he GOT IT ALL GONE....So I got up on Monday and got a shower and drove to work. I mean, come on. Bills to be paid. ....It wasn't 2 hours into the day and I began to feel the burning pain of the incision. Then deep, deep down inside, I began to feel pain. I became hot to the touch. I realized I made a mistake coming back to work so soon. Yes the surgeon had done an excellent job of removing the foreign matter that was responsible for causing me all my grief and pain for so long.....but now I needed time to heal.......at home......with my feet up.......geeze...anything else?
You might gather from my tone that I am not one that likes to just lay around. I actually find it difficult. Especially when I know there is a multitude of things I need to be doing. In this case my healing is needing me to "take it easy". This wound was a deep wound. It needed precise surgical expertise followed by my needing to rest and follow precise doctors orders. If I want to be completely healed I need to follow through completely. If I don't follow the doctor's orders precisely then, even though I may look okay on the outside; should I bump my tummy or over do it I will hurt myself deep inside. Worse yet risk possible infection. I think you get my point?
That was one type of wound. There are many different types of wounds; varying degrees. From minor scratches to cuts that require a band aid with ointment to lacerations needing stitches and anti biotics to deep internal injuries needing hospitalization and surgery. The causes? Let your mind run wild....A few ideas - Scrapes, burns, internal bleeding, gun shot wounds, knife wounds, broken bones, pulled muscles, dis-located joints and concussions. All such different wounds and needing such different treatment for pain relief and recovery. Still, they all need care and attention not just time to fully recovery.
Think about it, lets just say you were to bump into (literally) someone at work, church or on the road some where. Because of the circumstance you ended up with a dislocated elbow. I suppose you could try to ignore the pain and continue on with your life in the hopes that it would eventually "pop" back into place. Maybe it would. If you could live and move with the excruciating pain, perhaps it might. (Have you ever had a joint out of socket before? It is excruciating to move that appendage. I seriously doubt you could ) More likely, you are not going to want to move that part of your body at all and try to go about over compensating other parts of your body to make up for the loss of use of your other body part. However, whether you did or did not, everything would be outta wack regardless AND you will still be in pain. Even if you won't admit it. Because of the wound. The pain.
Let's take another, small more minor example. How about a scrape. Time perhaps can heal a scrape with no help at all from us. We get a scrape. We cover it up. Or not. We leave it alone. Forget it's there. Time will heal it.
What happens next?
Over a period of time...we are in fact required to help time by actively care for the wound. Daily. Until it begins to show signs of healing. Covering itself up with new skin. If we choose not to, which is our choice, then we risk the chance of infection and the possible need to open the wound up again.
So far I have mentioned open wounds.
What about those secret wounds. Those wounds no one else knows about but you. A wound that is so deep it has the ability to make your heart stop beating; in fact it has. This is why you have taken that wound and locked it far away, deep, deep down inside. Left it in there in the hopes that time would heal it. In the hopes that you would never have to relive the reason for the pain. It's still there isn't it? Yeah, because time needs your help.
This is the most dangerous kind of wound. By far the most deadly. This kind of wound is responsible for the death and destruction of families, marriages, parent and child relationships, friendships.
Left to itself in the dark recess's of our heart, this type of wound grows slowly. Never ceasing, slowly stealing much needed oxygen from our blood stream. This wound, not being visible to the naked eye; makes it very easy for us to ignore. Many cast aside this wound as anything but real. Some walk head long into a state of denial about it's mere existence. Unless we are poked or prodded in just the right spot and agitated just so... most of us will all but completely forget this type of wound exists in our life...in our body. (it truly does seem the easier way at the time)...Trouble is.....THE WOUND IS STILL VERY REAL AND VERY MUCH THERE......and until we face this fact and take/make the time to heal...we run the risk of infection, deep within ...worse yet...death. Death to the relationship that is connected to the wound.
I know it's hard. I really do. I have so many healed wounds.....so many more wounds to be yet healed. I also know the healer. I know it is possible to be healed of the deepest hurt. The hurt you think no one could ever understand. I am still undergoing healing with the Master. Every day.
This was a difficult blog to write. I had allot of interruptions. I almost just gave up. I hope it wasn't too broken up and confusing!
I suppose I would like to encourage the reader to take time to check back in to their heart. Open up that door that you closed way back when. You know the one - face the hurt. Forgive the one who bumped into you. Yes, it will hurt when you visit that time again. Depending on how deep the wound, how severe the dislocation...you may very well need to feel the pain again to be made whole.
But time alone will not heal your wound. Too much time in fact may only make it harder in the end. Requiring surgery, a reopening of the wounded site, re-breaking of a bone, or worse yet - gang green - death to the relationship. In some cases even death to ourselves. That is NOT what God wants.
God is a God of reconciliation.
He gave HIS only begotten Son to prove this.
Go ahead - set an appointment up with Dr. Yeshua, he's waiting to see you.
Shalom
