How God Heals Your Hidden Wounds

The good news for all of us, no matter where we are spiritually, no matter what we may be struggling with, is that God is able to heal our hidden wounds. They may be deep and longstanding. They may be a tangled web of confusion and pain. But God sees and understands. And regardless of how sin has scarred us, He can make us whole again. He can calm the storm raging in our hearts. He can replace bitterness and despair with peace and joy. He can rebuild and repair what is broken. Our loving heavenly Father wants nothing more than to comfort us and strengthen us as his beloved children. And he will do all of these things, if we seek him and place our trust in him. As the Psalmist assures us:

"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." – Psalm 34:18

"[The Lord] heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds." – Psalm 147:3

And as Jesus himself promised,

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." – Matthew 11:28-29

Is your soul troubled and restless? Are you weary and burdened in your spirit? Then come to Christ.

What I’d like to do this morning is talk about how we can experience rest and healing; how we can find comfort, and strength, and release from the pain of our hidden wounds. And I have three principles to suggest; three channels through which we can receive God’s power and blessing. What they all have in common is that they represent a turning to Christ in faith. Because ultimately, our trust isn’t in psychological theories or counseling techniques. We’re not relying on human wisdom, or intelligence, or advanced degrees. Nor will the answer to our quest come from the latest pharmaceuticals. Those things have their place; they may even be helpful, but they are not essential. They are not fundamental to our spiritual health. Because we are dealing here with the cure of souls, and the solution must be a spiritual one, a work of God accomplished within our hearts by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The first principle is this, that, healing comes through the application of truth to our hearts. Let me ask you a question: why is it so painful when other people mistreat you? Why does it hurt so much when someone you love speaks rudely to you, or harshly criticizes you, or becomes enraged at you? Because the implicit message, in their words or their conduct, is that you are not worthy of love and respect. You don’t deserve to be treated well. You don’t deserve to have your feelings taken into account. You deserve only contempt and rejection. Now, those attitudes may not be explicitly stated. They may not even be intended, although sometimes they are. Husbands and wives can say terrible, destructive things to one another. Siblings can be cruel to one another, and parents can emotionally abuse their children. I’ve seen parents whose attitude toward a child is constantly one of anger and condemnation. Nothing the child does is ever right, or good, or praiseworthy. And day after day, the parent pours acid on the child’s self-esteem. I’ll be honest with you; it makes me angry when I see people treating children that way. And it makes God angry. I’m reminded of Jesus’ words, that: