Meno: Healing Spiritual Wounds

“Souls without prayer are like people whose bodies or limbs are paralyzed, they possess feet and hands but cannot control them” - St Teresa of Avila 

Every person has soul wounds. Because of the brokenness of this world, because of sin, we live in a world full of wounded people. Most people walk around hurting but do not know the source of their pain. So instead of dealing with their woundedness, they take their pain and direct it outward. We watch as people attack, tear down and hurt others. In turn, those that were attacked and hurt, turn around and hurt others. So we have hurt people hurting people that in turn hurt people. (As Dr. Venkman would say “Mass Hysteria”.)

The way to stop the cycle of woundedness in your world is to shift/move? from outward avoidance to inward reflection. Through inward reflection, we can identify, understand and even heal our woundedness. In the following exercise, the Holy Spirit will guide you through the process of identification, understanding, and healing. 

“I believe that God both wills and can bring good out of everything, even the worst… I believe that even our mistakes and wrongdoing are not fruitless” -Dietrich Bonhoeffer

To begin, you will need to find a quiet place of solitude. Bring a bible, a pen, and a notebook to write thoughts, prayers or anything else that comes to mind. Some people focus better when they can write out what is going on in their inner life. Your quiet place can be in a room alone, a prayer closet or (for me) a spot on the couch with a candle (and a corgi lying next to me). Focus on quieting your thoughts and quieting your mind. Invite the Holy Spirit to bring peace to your thoughts and feelings, to posture your heart towards listening and reflecting. The Holy Spirit knows you better than you know yourself and will guide and teach you through this time. (1 Cor 2:13) 

“We must lay before Him what is in us; not what ought to be in us.” -CS Lewis 

Now that we are positioned to dive in, spend time thinking about where you feel hurt or anxiety. Think of the things that make you angry. Ask the Holy Spirit to bring these events and feelings to mind. It can be easy to feel shame during this. Do not let shame take hold; it is not of God. King Jesus is exposing truth in your life for your good and your restoration, not to hurt or shame you. 

As things come up, write them down. Place them in a container in your mind. Look at it and give it a name. Identify the feeling that you are feeling at that moment. See what it may be attached to. What is it that causes these feelings? Let God guide you to the answers. With God’s help, name the wound that has been revealed. 

A word of caution for you: This is not an easy or quick process. Yahweh may bring you to your wound quickly, or it may take time. Be patient with yourself and with Him. Wait upon Abba Father to work with you through this exercise and do not rush it. 

When you are disturbed, do not sin; ponder it on your beds, and be silent. - David 

Now that you have identified the wound, we are going to work on understanding it. Ask Yahweh how this wound causes you to act. How does it manifest in your outer world? Does it cause you to isolate yourself? Does it cause you to rage against people? Maybe it causes you to lean into activities that numb the pain like binging food, alcohol, tv or pornography. Maybe it causes criticalness. Walk with the Holy Spirit through these questions and understand how this wound manifests itself. 

Next, ask the question “Why do I have this wound?” Ask “Why does it manifest in this way?” Continue to spend time understanding the wound. The better we understand a wound, the better we can treat it. God will guide you through this exercise; make sure to pay attention to his leading throughout it. 

After we have spent time identifying a soul wound, and have some kind of understanding where it comes from, we can begin to have it be healed. It is important to know that you cannot heal a soul wound by your power. We do not have that ability. We are broken because of sin. 

Healing can only come from Abba Father. Healing is a grace given to us; it is not merited by our actions. It is not about having “enough” faith or the right words. Healing is an act of God that comes from an overflow of His loving nature. 

So take time to ask Yahweh to begin healing your woundedness. Surrender the pain and the control of it over to Him. Ask Him to bring peace over this wound. Ask Him to heal the pain, and to use it for his glory and your good. He is faithful to do it. 

Remember, this can take time. It will not be a single time of doing this exercise that will bring you peace and healing. But as you surrender the wounds to Abba Father, He will begin a restorative work in you. 

What is a Soul Wound and do I have one?

"Would I rather be feared or loved? Easy. Both. I want people to be afraid of how much they love me." -Michael Scott 

It is always on the day that I have to go to Iowa City for a doctor’s appointment. I don’t know if there is something about the hospital that makes me more reflective, more melancholy, or if it is just by chance. I don’t know if it is the voices inside my head, or if it is the enemy attacking my spirit. The one thing that I do know is that on days that I go to Iowa City for a doctor’s appointment, I feel devastatingly alone. 

It is not the same kind of alone as just being by yourself. It is isolation; the feeling of being unloved and unneeded; the feeling of being forgotten. I feel like I am Gollum sitting alone on his island on the pool in the Misty Mountains. The only thing I can hear other than the dripping and the echos are my thoughts… and they are not kind. 

“I say to God, my rock, Why have you forgotten me? Why must I walk about mournfully because the enemy oppresses me” - David 

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. And out of chaos, God created the air, the sky, the earth (and fire for you Avatar fans out there). He creates every creature, big and tall. Creatures that swim, fly, crawl and everything in between. He creates beautiful gardens and fills the earth with wonders. God the artist is at work.

His favorite creation, though, is made out of the dust of the earth. It has the breath of life breathed into it from God himself. (Gen 2:7) It is a man and he is created in God’s image. He is like God. And just like God lives within the community of the trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit), He creates man to be in relationship. So He creates woman to be his helpmate, his lover, and his friend. (Gen 2:18-23) 

He gives them work to do that they will enjoy. “Fill the earth, subdue it and have dominion.” (Gen 1:29-39) They share in the work of God, ruling over creation. God provided for them everything they needed. They had no wants. God only had one boundary. “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.” (Gen 2:17). 

God looks at his creation. It is very good. (Gen 1:31) And then he rests. (Gen 2:2) 

Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. (Genesis 2:7)

My feeling of loneliness is not good. It is not what God wants for me. It is not even close to the truth. I have a wife that loves me more than anyone else could. I have a family that is always there and is always supportive. I have deep, close friends, and a Kingdom community in my church. The truest thing is that I am never alone. I abide in my Abba Father. He never leaves or forsakes me. I am always in his presence. God is constantly saying “For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand. It is I who say to you ‘Do not fear, for I will help you’” (Isaiah 41:13).

So why am I gripped by such a feeling of isolation? Why do I continually go back to the lie that I am alone and unloved? The reason I return to these feelings is because of an affliction that each of us has, “Soul wounds.” 

A “soul wound” is a belief that has been inflicted upon you that is held so deep that it distorts the vision of your identity and the world around you. Each of us has soul wounds. Some have wounds that say “I do not belong.” Some say “You can't trust anyone. They are all out to get you.” Many of us just believe that we are not loved and are unworthy of love.

A soul wound can be inflicted from several different places. It can be accidentally inflicted by your parents in the way you were raised. It can be from a trusted friend or an old rival. Teachers, coaches, old bosses, all of these can have inflicted a soul wound upon you. There are even times that it is the enemy speaking right into you, distorting your inner voice, corrupting the very way that you view yourself. 

“ I was afraid because I was naked, So I hid…” Adam 

“For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God.” Adam could hear a voice talking to Eve.. It was said almost in a whisper, like the very first secret being shared. But what was the most different about the words than anything he had heard before was the message being shared. He could be like God.

He could be like God. That meant he was not like God. It meant that he was not enough...

 He was a killer from the very start. He couldn’t stand the truth because there wasn’t a shred of truth in him. - Jesus (John 8:44) 

With that first lie, Satan inflicted the first soul wound upon Adam. Adam’s vision of the reality of who he was was shaken. And because he did not rightly view himself it led him to the first sin. Mankind has struggled with sin ever since. 

The largest problem with soul wounds is not the accompanying feeling of hurt, but that they drive us to sin. Like the wound that told Adam that he was not enough, our woundedness drives us to do things that grieve God’s heart. When we do not believe that we are loved or lovable, we may look for love in dark and secret places. When we believe that there is no security to be had in the world, we can build up walls and hurt those around us for the sake of safety. 

An untreated soul wound always leads to sin. 

We will discuss next time how to be aware of what your soul wound is and how to treat it. 

I would love to hear from you! What are the wounds that you see most in the people around you? 

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