Inner healing

Inner healing IS so crucial?

 Despite the million messages on Facebook that tell you to just "forget about the past" as if it's possible, to ignore and move on. The truth is we need to HEAL the past. It's not just a good endeavour, it's crucial. 

Why? Here are two reasons. 

Our relationship with God is tied to our trauma, and our relationship with others is deeply affected by trauma. Unhealed trauma does such extreme damage to our relationship with God and our relationships with others that it can stop us from living out the entire purpose we were created for. 

I was raised to view God as a merciless tyrant who hated me. My views were based on the child abuse I had suffered. The abuse made me feel utterly worthless. I felt so worthless in fact that my first suicide plan was made at age seven!

I thought God was angry because I figured he was like my parents. As their rage and cruelty saturated my heart, it warped my view of God. 

The abuse I survived also damaged my ability to have healthy interpersonal relationships. When those who are supposed to protect you from birth violate you, and neglect and reject you, it destroys the ability to trust anyone, including God. 

Without the love and affection of a parent, a child develops an insatiable need to prove themselves and earn love. This comes out in hyper submission, such as in my first marriage. "The doormat" mentality.  It also manifests as a lack of boundaries and codependency. 

Left unhealed, these traits do a few things. They set a person up to be re-victimized, such as I was in my first marriage. The unhealed trauma steals so much out of our life. We were created to love others, and serve (not out of compulsion) but serve in such a way that we exemplify Christ's love and how he humbled himself to serve us. 

If we remain unhealed the focus is on getting love, getting acceptance rather than giving love to others as ambassadors of Christ. Moreover, if we don't do the work to heal our perspectives regarding God, then we can't exemplify him. We can't love God for who he is, because our perspective is skewed whether we realize it or not.

So, take the time to do the hard work. Each trauma imprinted perspectives about ourselves, others and God. We need to realign those to the truth. 

Healing is a journey. It takes time, energy, intentionality and investment. It only happens when we invite Jesus into those deep dark painful places in our souls, into those memories that are too painful to speak about out loud. 

As each memory surfaces, or is triggered. It is an opportunity to invite Jesus to open our eyes to the truth in that situation. 

Let the healing begin, healing is sacred work. It is spiritual renewal. 

" He heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds. Psalm 147:3