"Lord, heal me and I will be completely well; rescue me and I will be perfectly safe..."
--Jeremiah 17:11(GNT)
--Jeremiah 17:11(GNT)
Inner Healing. Perhaps you have heard this term before; but what is it? What does it mean?
Inner healing is the wholeness, freedom, and wellness that comes to our soul when we bring our emotional hurt, pain, wounds, and bruises before the Father. He is "Jehovah Rapha", the Lord God who heals.
We live in fallen, broken, depraved world where sin abounds. Soul wounds that originated from suppressed or unresolved childhood trauma, inner turmoil, and emotional distress lead us to search out ways to self-soothe and cope--even if it is a "temporary fix". We will employ almost anything to "feel" better and numb pain; substance abuse, alcoholism, pornography and sexual immorality, avoidance, retreating/social withdrawal and isolation, blaming, shaming others, gossip, slander, explosive anger and rage, as well as self-harming behaviors and tendencies. The difficulty with these efforts is that they DO NOT help. They bring more harm and detriment to our souls; and often effect our relationships with others as those in our circles become impacted by our words, actions, thoughts, behaviors. It's a bleak picture, right? Well, I have Good News! This is why Jesus came! He came to minister healing, even at the soul level.
Inner healing is the wholeness, freedom, and wellness that comes to our soul when we bring our emotional hurt, pain, wounds, and bruises before the Father. He is "Jehovah Rapha", the Lord God who heals.
We live in fallen, broken, depraved world where sin abounds. Soul wounds that originated from suppressed or unresolved childhood trauma, inner turmoil, and emotional distress lead us to search out ways to self-soothe and cope--even if it is a "temporary fix". We will employ almost anything to "feel" better and numb pain; substance abuse, alcoholism, pornography and sexual immorality, avoidance, retreating/social withdrawal and isolation, blaming, shaming others, gossip, slander, explosive anger and rage, as well as self-harming behaviors and tendencies. The difficulty with these efforts is that they DO NOT help. They bring more harm and detriment to our souls; and often effect our relationships with others as those in our circles become impacted by our words, actions, thoughts, behaviors. It's a bleak picture, right? Well, I have Good News! This is why Jesus came! He came to minister healing, even at the soul level.
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come."--Luke 4:18-19(NLT)
The Hebrew word for HEAL is "rapha'" (H7495) meaning "to heal a wounded person by sewing up the wound" and "to restore to pristine felicity"! This IS good news because the healing power of Jesus is strong enough to restore us to a state of joy, peace, safety, wholeness, and wellness that is divine and as God originally intended.
You may be thinking, "Sounds good, but I've lived foul. I've done some vile, low-down things." Consider the word of Jesus:
And Jesus replied to them, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but [only] those who are sick. I did not come to call the [self-proclaimed] righteous [who see no need to repent], but sinners to repentance [to change their old way of thinking, to turn from sin and to seek God and His righteousness].”--Luke 5:31-32(AMP)
Jesus ministered to all manner of people; the poor, the adulterer, the sick, the sly and manipulative, the tormented and distressed, the bitter, the angry and offended, the forgotten and ostracized. No one is beyond the reach of our loving Father's arms.
If you find yourself somewhere in this blog post, I hope that you will allow the truth of God's word to hit your heart. No brokenness is beyond repair. When we honestly and transparently bring our laments, our disappointments, and the wounds of our soul to God in prayer, he promises to heal and restore.
Prayer
Father, in the name of Jesus, I confess that my heart is broken. I experienced____________ as a child and I was greatly wounded by it. I give you the pain of this experience. I ask you to heal me. I have done some things that have not been good as a result, like_________ and_________. I pray that you would forgive me now. I ask you to fill me with your love, peace, and security. Blanket my thoughts with your warmth and compassion. I receive your goodness and mercy now. In Jesus' name, Amen.
If you have prayed this prayer, I'd love to hear from you. Please email me at:
lauri@abrokenheartsgps.org
You may be thinking, "Sounds good, but I've lived foul. I've done some vile, low-down things." Consider the word of Jesus:
And Jesus replied to them, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but [only] those who are sick. I did not come to call the [self-proclaimed] righteous [who see no need to repent], but sinners to repentance [to change their old way of thinking, to turn from sin and to seek God and His righteousness].”--Luke 5:31-32(AMP)
Jesus ministered to all manner of people; the poor, the adulterer, the sick, the sly and manipulative, the tormented and distressed, the bitter, the angry and offended, the forgotten and ostracized. No one is beyond the reach of our loving Father's arms.
If you find yourself somewhere in this blog post, I hope that you will allow the truth of God's word to hit your heart. No brokenness is beyond repair. When we honestly and transparently bring our laments, our disappointments, and the wounds of our soul to God in prayer, he promises to heal and restore.
Prayer
Father, in the name of Jesus, I confess that my heart is broken. I experienced____________ as a child and I was greatly wounded by it. I give you the pain of this experience. I ask you to heal me. I have done some things that have not been good as a result, like_________ and_________. I pray that you would forgive me now. I ask you to fill me with your love, peace, and security. Blanket my thoughts with your warmth and compassion. I receive your goodness and mercy now. In Jesus' name, Amen.
If you have prayed this prayer, I'd love to hear from you. Please email me at:
lauri@abrokenheartsgps.org
Hebrew definitions from Strong's Exhaustive Biblical Concordance
