Healing Wounds, Part 2

[Editor’s Note: This is part two in a two-part series titled “Healing Wounds.”] largest human organ T he is the skin. The skin covers an area of about 20 square feet. Your skin protects and helps regulate body temperature. Such a large area is sure to receive wounds. It is after a scrapped knee, puncture, cut, abrasion, or after the wound from a surgeon’s knife that an amazing process of healing begins.

Left untreated, wounds become infected. Infection has a wretched smell and can lead to excision of flesh surrounding the wound or worse, amputation.

Heart wounds, if left untreated, develop infection. Uncared for wounds can poison an entire family and severely and adversely affect those who come into the family by friendship, marriage, and birth.

Even a casual read through the Bible, the reader will learn about people who lived thousands of years ago and serve as examples to learn from. Hannah was ridiculed because she was unable to have children (1 Samuel chapter 1). Esther lost both her parents at a young age, raised by her uncle, then moved into the kings’ palace and became queen (Esther). The ancient prophet Hosea whose wife repeatedly lived in promiscuity (Hosea). Your heart wounds may be deep and painful, but your wounds can be healed. Your wound may be from one incident or from a series of events over years, but your wound can heal.

Whatever the wound you have received, whoever inflicted the wound, however deep and lasting the effects of your wounding, you are not alone. Others have experienced what you have experienced. Your feelings of anger, embarrassment, hate, pain, remorse, revenge, are natural, are to be expected and need to be properly addressed.

Denying and ignoring the wound exists is to inflict greater pain and deepens the wound. Eliminating all reminders of the person who inflicted the wound will not ease the pain nor remove the grief. If a spouse hurt you, removing his or her photo from all the other photographs will not heal the wound.

Never speaking to the person who wounded you does not heal the wound.

Telling others about how someone hurt you does not heal the wound. Changing jobs, where and how you live, whatever change you attempt the wound goes with you. What can one do to begin healing?

One of the greatest stories told in the Bible is that of the life of Joseph. The Joseph with the coat of many colors. Despised by his brothers for the obvious favoritism their father had for this eleventh son.

Joseph’s story is told in Genesis chapters 37-50.

Through his brothers, God worked several miracles in Josephs life.

Examining Joseph’s life, we see the struggle Joseph worked through to the heart wounds he received.

What did Joseph experience that wounded his heart? Joseph’s brothers hated Joseph and expressed their hatred and anger to Joseph (Genesis 37:2-11).

Joseph’s brothers plotted to kill Joseph but settled on selling him into slavery (Gen. 37:18-28). Joseph was falsely accused of sexual assaulting his owner’s wife and thrown into prison (Gen. 39:5-20).

While in prison, another inmate promised Joseph that he would work to free Joseph. Unfortunately, the promise was false, the other inmate “did not remember Joseph, but forgot him” (Gen. 40:23).

After living for so long with these deep heart wounds, God worked a miracle in Joseph’s life.

I believe God still works miracles today and even in your life. Can you believe this?

Through a miracle Joseph is freed from prison and is elevated to the second in command in all of Egypt.

Moreover, Joseph oversees all the food and supplies in the Egyptian empire for the seven years of plenty and the seven years of famine.

Joseph marries a woman and has two children.

“Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh, For, he said, God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s household. He named the second Ephraim, For, he said, God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction” (Gen. 41:51-52).

What is the lesson here for us? It is this, Joseph obviously let his past go and no doubt letting go of his past was not easy. When we let go of those who hurt us, did us wrong, it will not be easy. When we release those who hurt us, we are not forgetting what happened, or placing blame.

We do not release others from what they did to us, we release ourselves from the power and control they have over us.

Because Joseph let go of his past, released those who wounded him deeply, this allowed for something new and greater to come into his life. Without letting go of the past, Joseph would not have enjoyed his present or his future. The name of his second son, “Ephraim” tells us that once we let go of those who have wounded us, hurt us, God sends new opportunities, new blessings, and a new beginning.

Without releasing those who hurt you, it is difficult, if not impossible to enjoy our present and future.

Acknowledge what happened. What will you do with that person and your wounds? I encourage you to do what Joseph did and what the apostle Paul wrote, “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own, but one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prized of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).

Yes, the wounds hurt, yes, it is unfair and it should not have happened. But it did and nothing we do can change our past. We can change our present and our future by doing what Joseph did, release those who hurt us and look to the future for new blessings and opportunities God will provide.

Perhaps the most difficult challenge is to follow Joseph’s third example, change your perspective.

Many years later, Joseph stands in front of his brothers and says, “Do not be afraid, for am I in God’s place? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant if for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive” (Gen.

50:19-20).

God uses the difficulties and the painful events in our lives to change us, to mold us, and change our perspective. God used every heart wound to prepare Joseph for the future.

Likewise, God is preparing and changing your perspective for a greater good and a greater future.

Clayton P. Adams, West Memphis, AR email: claytonp adamslll@gmail.com.

Clayton Adams