Colleen Orchanian

What does it mean to be healed? Dr. Bob Schuttes defines healing as “an ongoing encounter with God’s love and truth that brings us into wholeness and communion.” Dr. Bob is a retired therapist, co-host of a podcast called Restore the Glory, and author of many books on healing, including one called Be Healed.

Let's dig into his definition of healing.

An ongoing encounter: Not one and done. It's a process. We might heal in one area and then find another that needs healing. We continue to heal throughout our lives.

With God's love: Love heals. Knowing God's love heals a soul.

And truth: Our wounds leave us with lies about who we are, who God is, and how we can relate to the world. Identifying those lies and embracing the truth is part of the healing process.

That brings us into wholeness: my wounds can create obstacles that sometimes work against healing. I have protective parts that work to keep me safe from being hurt again, but they also keep me from receiving the love God wants to give. Wholeness means that my body, mind and soul are working together as God designed them.

And communion: When I am whole, my relationships are stronger. They nurture me, and I nurture others. Relationships with other people here on earth and, even more important, my relationship with God. I am in communion with God. I am one with God.

We need and want healing of our wounds. But how do we get wounded? It can happen in childhood with a broken family, abuse, neglect, or abandonment. It can happen in our teens as we encounter other young people who are broken, people who are unkind, rude, or bullies. We can get wounded in our jobs by bad bosses and difficult co-workers, or in our marriages when our spouse doesn't love us as we need to be loved. It can happen when we are exposed to the ugly things of the world through war, police work, mental health work, and family court. It happens when we fall into sinful lifestyles and habits. These experiences can wound us, and some wounds are deeper than others. We may try to mask the pain, but it will stay until we allow God to heal.

How do you know you need healing?

We see people who are obviously broken. They talk badly about themselves, lose control easily, get defensive at the slightest thing, and maybe they are even suicidal. We might think:There's a person who needs healing, right? I'm not that bad. Sure, I've had bad things happen in life, but I've got it under control. I'm over it. My situation isn't anything like that. Let God help that poor guy or gal. I'm good.

Does that sound familiar? Can you relate? One lie in that kind of thinking is that, when I have it under control, it means I don't have wounds. Even when my life seems in order, I may still have some wounds, some hurts, some tender places that have not been healed. Why does that matter? Because God wants us to be healed completely. He offers us an abundant life, but without healing, we can't have it. The devil wants us to settle for less, and God wants to bless us abundantly.

Signs that we need healing:

Broken relationships. Sometimes we end relationships because they are toxic. That's healthy and may be just what God desires for us. But when we can't sustain healthy relationships, maybe it's not them, but us. If everyone else seems to be rude, unreliable, selfish, cold, a bad friend—maybe it's not them. A good example of this is the character of Eleanor in a show called The Good Place. She was neglected as a child, and that wound caused her to avoid making connections with anyone. She cared only about herself and had no friends. Unhealthy people put up walls to keep others out. They hurt other people, passing on their pain. Jesus warns us in Matthew 12:36: "But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken." We all speak carelessly. We are all short with others sometimes. We all can shut people out. These are signs of an underlying need for healing.

Triggers. Someone says something, and it makes us so mad. We may not lash out at them, but inside we're fuming. Or we do lash out, and even though we know that we're overreacting, we can't help it. Everyone has triggers, but we don't all have the same triggers. That's how we know it's a wound that needs healing. Years ago I had a visit from a door-to-door salesman. He showed me an expensive vacuum cleaner that was very good quality. I told him I needed to talk it over with my husband. His response was something like, "So you can't make this decision on your own. You need to get permission." Well, you know what I did. I went and bought that stinkin' vacuum cleaner. Nobody was going to tell me I needed permission from a MAN to buy something. I was a feminist. That was a trigger for me. I needed healing.

Distance from God. When I am hurting, I am less likely to go to prayer—and that's the best remedy! My tendency is to turn on a movie or scroll through social media. So instead of letting God heal my wounds, I shut Him out. I am not taking the medicine I most need. My husband complains I don't take medicine when I'm sick. He's right; I avoid it. We can do the same when we need the spiritual medicine of prayer. Why do we keep that distance? Maybe we want to indulge in the other behavior—the scrolling or TV. Maybe we don't believe it will help. Or maybe we don't even consider going to prayer. It's not a habit we have developed. But it should be!

Physical Ailments. Our emotional and spiritual wounds show up in our bodies. There was a book published about 10 years ago called The Body Keeps the Score. In it, the author explores how trauma reshapes the body and brain. Our wounds or hurts can show up as heart disease, high blood pressure, depression, panic attacks, back pain, migraines, diabetes, ulcers, and cancer. They rewire our brains and make it more difficult for us to experience pleasure, self-control, and trust. Maybe some of your physical ailments result from unhealed wounds.

Spiritual Effects. When we are not healed, we are a bigger target for the devil. Fr. Carlos Martins from the Exorcist Files says, "Our wounds are the handles by which the devil is able to grab on and manipulate us." If you are betrayed by an unfaithful spouse, Satan will go after that wound. He has no mercy. The more pain you feel, the better. We might hear in our head: It's your fault. You could have done this or that. You were stupid to get married in the first place. You were a fool to have missed the signs of infidelity. Everyone else knew, and they were laughing at you. Your life is over. Those are the words we hear in our head, the lies of the enemy. Lies about who we are. Lies that keep us from going to the One who loves us perfectly—God our Father.

When we accept the effects of our brokenness, of our woundedness, we are settling for less than what God desires.

What about perfect healing?

We can be healed in this life, although not perfectly. This is not heaven. The world is broken. Evil is real. Imperfect and wounded people hurt us. We fall short of the glory of God through our own sins. But all is not lost. Because Jesus promised an abundant life. We can have that now if we seek healing. If we allow God to work on those most tender places in our hearts.

Perfect healing will come in heaven, but in this life, healing happens. It is real. We can come to know our identity as a beloved son or daughter of God. We can be united to God, perfect Father, Jesus our Savior, and the Holy Spirit who is within us. We can know and trust God in all things. We can come to see others through the eyes and love of Jesus, not with our wounded and fearful eyes.

St. Jean Vianney, the Cure of Ars, is an example of a healed man. He was very holy—devoted to God, but he struggled with his studies in seminary. Sometimes others ridiculed him, but his response was always patient. It didn't matter what others thought of him. He knew his identity and trusted God completely, even when he was failing in seminary. He knew who he was, and that he was called to be a priest. We want to be like that. We want to be able to hear the ridicule without allowing it to define who or what we are. We want to acknowledge our failures without letting those failures become our identity.

When we have an ongoing encounter with God's love and truth, it brings us into wholeness and communion. And that is what God desires for us. May we desire it as well.

Questions for prayer

1. What are the signs that you need healing? What effects are you experiencing? Remember the five areas: broken relationships, distance from God, triggers, physical effects and spiritual attacks.

2. If you were to experience healing, what difference might it make in your life? What would feel or look or sound different?

There is more to come on healing. Next week's post will continue the series on healing, exploring the healing needed for our bodies, minds, and souls.