Embarking on a New Year is a great time for reflection and introspection. I often meditate on the familiar scripture out of the 23rd Psalms where David says, “He restores my soul”. As long as we are living on this earth we will often find that our soul is often in the need of the care of the Good Shepherd. There is an intense process in finding out the cause of pain and discomfort in our physical bodies, but not so much with our soul. The Greek Word for soul is psyche where the English word psychology is derived from. How often are the lingering issues with our soul because of a psychological injury that has not been properly diagnosed and treated.
I can reflect back on my own life and remember the incidents that brought about pain. It took me some time to learn to surrender those tender areas to the Lord as my therapist and doctor. If we are really honest we can all admit that we do not readily come under the “doctors orders” of our Shepherd, nor take in our daily dose of medication, His living Word. Our efforts in self-medicating, or seeking a solution everywhere else but in the presence of the one who bore 39 stripes on His back for our healing. Jesus’s desire for our healing is more than just a relief from symptoms but a treatment that addresses root causes.
I have been given orders by the Lord himself as my physician of deliberate actions that I needed to take to ensure not only my healing but coming into wholeness.
The amazing encounter Jesus had with the woman with the issue of blood is a great example of how much our Savior wants us to be well. He did not just announce that she was healed, but said that her faith had made her whole. That meant that everything she lost during the time of her illness was restored. It meant that whatever shame, disappointment and rejection was healed to the degree that it was as if it never happened. The New Year is filled with many uncertainties. One thing we can be certain of is that our Savior desires us healed, whole in every aspect of our lives. We are not slaves to the hurt, pain, guilt, or regret of our past. HE makes all things new, and the stripes that wounded Him were for our healing and wholeness.
