The Lord our God is Jehovah—Rapha, the God who heal us. Healing is the restoration of body, mind or spirit to a state of wholeness and well-being., (Exodus 1526)
Many of us have had injuries or sicknesses that have left scars. Some of us have visible scars from things that have happened. Some of those surgeries or wounds left behind scars. There are other wounds that left scars that are not visible. These hidden wounds are in the mind or spirit. Often these hidden wounds haunt and hurt for years. These wounds may be painful memories from past losses, failures, or abuse. They may be wounds of the heart, emotions or in the spirit. These kinds of wounds come from many different types of things.
How do we get these hidden wounds? Hidden wounds come several sources.
- We can be hurt by the prejudices of others.
- We can we wounded by our peers in school or at work.
- We can be scarred by the behavior of our own family.
- We can be wounded by loves that have failed.
- We can have wounds from our own mistakes and failures.
Some people are better at hiding their wounds. They don’t want anyone to know they have pain. The emotional and spiritual scars can haunt and hurt much longer than physical wounds. The Lord our God is not just a Healer of our broken bodies, He can heal the broken heart and the wounded spirit.
God wants to heal our hidden wounds.
In Exodus 15:26 NIV He tells us that He is Jehovah-Rapha…“the Lord who heals you.”
Psalm 147:3 NCV He is the God who “heals the broken-hearted and bandages their wounds.”
How does God heal and bandage our hidden wounds? God’s Word indicates that He often uses a process of things to bring healing. This process is based on 5 principles. They do not always occur in the same order.
Five steps in God’s healing process.
The first step is to reveal the hurt.
The healing begins when we reveal our hurt.God tells us what happens if we refuse to face our feelings.
David liked to keep things hidden in his heart.
In Psalm 32:3 NCV David said: “When I kept things to myself, I felt weak deep inside me. I moaned all day long.”
Psalm 39:2-3 NCV On another occasion, he wrote this: “I kept very quiet…but I became even more upset. I became very angry inside, and as I thought about it, my anger burned.”
What happens when we refuse to reveal our hurts?
David said he felt tired all the time and he moaned all day long. He became very angry and distressed inside and filled with anguish. This is just the beginning of the symptoms.
God’s redemption, grace, and sanctification are absolutely essential for real healing in the core of our mind and being. People with hidden hurts try to escape and find relief from the pain. We do all kinds of things to ignore what is going on inside. We may bury ourselves in work or activities. People turn to all kinds of things in an attempt to get relief.
Many years ago a lady came to church looking for relief from her hidden pains. She tried to find relief in drugs, alcohol, witchcraft, and every other kind of thing. She tried to find help from false loves and all kinds of spiritual encounters. None of those things worked very well. She thought she had relief, but it was only temporary. Nothing she had tried was a remedy and they didn’t remove the pain. When she came to church she was a real mess. That Sunday she came to the altar and opened her heart and mind to Jesus, He came in with healing, cleansing and power. Immediately she received healing on the inside.
David eventually learned to open his heart and reveal his hurt. He learned to be honest with God.
We need to be honest with three people.
We need to be honest with ourselves. We need to recognize that the pain and the shame of the hidden wound is hurting us.
We also need to be honest with God.We can do what David did. We can tell God exactly how we feel. God can handle our feelings. He was there when we were hurt. He saw the wound and felt the pain. He is not surprised with our feelings or emotion. He knows what you need to say. He knows you hurt.You need to be honest with God.
Then we need to tell someone else.David told the whole world. Everyone does not need to know the details of your pain. You need to tell someone you trust.
First, Healing begins when we reveal our hurt.
Second, healing begins when we release those who hurt us.
We all have to make one very difficult decision. Do you want to get well…or do I want to get even? You can’t do both! Have you ever tried to get even? Have you tried to hurt the person who hurt you? Did it work? Did you get well? Is the pain gone?
How can we release those who hurt us? There is only one way to get rid of the hurt in our hearts. We must do what Jesus did.
We must learn to forgive. Forgiveness works even if you are not a Christian. Whoever hurt you probably does not deserve to be forgiven. The fact is that none of us deserve to be forgiven.
God – for Christ’s sake – has forgiven each of us. Do you know that God has forgiven you?
If you want relief from the hurt, you must release those who hurt you. This is not just a Biblical fact, it has been proven by people from several fields of research. When we release those who have hurt us, we receive healing on the inside.
Jesus taught us to forgive others just like God has forgiven us. Forgiveness is a path to healing. When we release those who hurt us, we release them to God. God knows all of the hurt you have ever experienced. Good news is we don’t have to “settle the score.”God knows all about your pain.
In Psalms 56:8 David said: God has “kept a record of all my tears.” God knows all of the details of everything you have suffered. If there is a score to be settled, God said He would do it. He knows how to take care of it for you. God wants to “balance the books” for us.
Do you remember what Jesus did? Jesus was hanging on that cross because of your sin and mine. While He was hanging there on the cross, Jesus was mocked, scorned and denied. He was brutally abused for each of us. What did Jesus do?
1 Peter 2:23 LB “When Jesus suffered, he did not threaten to get even; he left his case in the hands of God.”
From the cross Jesus said: “Father, forgive them.” If you want to be healed you have to forgive.
The first step to healing is to reveal the hurt.
The second step is to release the hurt.
The third step is to replace old tapes with God’s truths.
If we want our hidden hurts to be healed, we need to replace old tapes with God’s truths. Our brain is amazing. It has recorded everything we have ever seen, heard, smelled, touched or tasted. Unfortunately, it does not always distinguish what is valid and what is not. As a result, we often base our lives on faulty data.
What do I mean?
As you were growing up, did anyone say something bad to you?
- “You’re ugly!”
- “You’re stupid!”
- “You embarrass me!”
- “You’re never going to amount to anything!”
- “Why can’t you be like…?”
Those words were recorded 20, 40, 60 years ago in our mind. Some people still listen to those old tapes.
Do you remember having a tape recorder?
I had a handheld dictaphone that had mini-tapes. It was perfect 50 years ago for recording notes to help me remember certain things. A few years ago, I got that old tape recorder out and tried to listen to some of those tapes. The sound was terrible and the message was unclear.
That same thing happens when we keep playing back those old messages in our minds. The older they get, the more distorted they become. When we play those old messages in our mind, we are revisiting those old hurts and pains.
Paul said: “Let God transform you…”
Romans 12:2 NLT “Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.”
- How does God transform us?
- How does He heal the old hurts and give us a new way to think and live?
God will help you change the way you think! How can that happen? How can God change the way we think?
We have to start hearing what God says about us!
First, we have to get into God’s Word and then get God’s word into us. Start hearing what God is saying about you and see how God looks at you. You need to hear God say, “You are forgiven and accepted.” You need to hear Him say, “You are clean and free.” You need to know that old hurt and life cannot hold you captive.
When you let the Word of God settle down inside of you, it begins erasing the messages — from the past.
1 John 1:7 NLT But if we are living in the light of God’s presence, just as Christ is, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from every sin.
Ephesians 1:4 LB Through what Christ does for us, God decided to make us holy in His eyes, without a single fault – we stand before Him covered with His love.
You are loved!
Through what Christ does for us, we stand before Him“without a single fault.” What Jesus Christ did on the cross and in the grave still works.
God looks at us covered with His love. What do you think God says about you? God loves you so much that He gave His Son for you.
God is not going to say:
- “You are worthless or good for nothing.”
- “You are not able to do anything but fail.”
God is going to say:
- “You are lovable!”
- “You are loved!”
- “You are valuable!”
- “Look what I have done for you!”
- “I can use you on my team!”
- “You are valuable!”
Who are we going to believe? Are you going to believe the past, or, are you going to listen to the God who tells us the truth today?
First, reveal the hurt — talk to God about it.
Second, release the hurt — give it over to God.
Third, replace the old tapes — let God’s Word fill you with a new message.
Fourth, refocus from the past to the future.
In Philippians 3:12-14 NLT God tells us to: “forget the past and look forward to what lies ahead.”
How do we “forget the past?” We can’t forget the past by focusing on what has happened. We forget by refocusing.
- Turn your attention from your hurt to our Healer.
- Turn your attention from your pain to God’s plan.
- Turn your attention from what you were to what God can do.
- Turn your attention from being a victim to becoming a victor.
That is what Paul said and did. Paul had a very painful past. He persecuted and murdered the saints. Some people who worked with him did some terrible things to him. He was accused of doing and saying things that he did not do. Think about the guilt and hurt that could have plagued and destroyed Paul.
Philippians 3:12 Paul said, “I keep working toward the day when I will finally be all that Christ Jesus saved me for and wants me to be.”
He knew what Jesus Christ had done in him and he was an overcomer. He had victory because he was pardoned by what Christ Jesus gained on the cross. He was changed by the power of the Spirit.
None of us have to repeat our past. God will break the chains of your past and give a new future.
We need to refocus! The Apostle Paul, said look “toward the day when we will finally be all that Christ Jesus saved us for and wants us to be.” Through Jesus Christ, all of the hurts and hidden wounds of the past can find real relief.
He is Jehovah—Rapha, “the Lord who heals.”
- We can reveal all our hurts to Him.
- We can release all who have hurt us to Him.
- We can receive the truth from His Word about ourselves.
- We can receive pardon for our past and power to refocus on our future from Him.
One of the most amazing things about Jehovah—Rapha, the God who heals, is how He changes us. God doesn’t want to waste His healing. He wants everyone that has been healed to help other people who are still hurting and need healing.2 Corinthians 1:4 NCV God comforts us every time we have trouble, so when others have trouble, we can comfort them with the same comfort God gives us.
God can use our most painful experiences to shape us for service.
God can use the wounds and scars we want to hide and the pain we want to forget to help and heal others. Read the stories about Samuel, Job, and David. God was able to save, heal and deliver them from all of their troubles. God was faithful to Moses, Joshua and Abraham. He was able to deliver Daniel and the three Hebrew children. Their stories have helped us when we face difficulties.
What will you do with what you’ve been through?
Don’t waste it. You have become a survivor and overcomer.
2 Corinthians 1:4 NCV “God comforts us every time we have trouble, so when others have trouble, we can comfort them with the same comfort God gives us.”
God is ready to touch you where you hurt. He is ready to bring the healing you need. His is Jehovah-Rapha, the God who heals.
