Kissing Away Our Ouchies"
Friday, May 17, 2024
Heal me, O Lord, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise. Jer. 17:14, NIV.
Acute pain—none of us wants to experience the sudden, often-excruciating sensation. Yet all of us have bouts with it over the course of our lives. The intensity varies. Sometimes it's minor, such as when we were small and skinned our knees, and other times it's more intrusive, the result of a serious accident or disease.
Despite the degree of pain, two common reactions occur. First, we become focused on the pain itself. And second, at some point we seek care and comfort. When we were children, we often ran to Mom for reassurance and care of our "ouchies." Usually she washed out our wound, put on a bandage, and kissed the "ouchy" away.
Unfortunately, all acute pain is not so easily taken care of, and invariably we experience the other end of the pain spectrum, one that demands medical attention. Our pain has now become a signal of a more serious problem and alerts us to our need for more definitive care and treatment. We must seek a physician.
Our emotional and spiritual pain is not unlike our physical pain. It helps us focus and realize the need to attend to some problem. To regain health we need to heed this signal. We must seek treatment from the Physician. And only when we acknowledge our pain and seek help from the Source of health and life can we receive the appropriate treatment, care, and compassion that will lead to the restoration of our spiritual health.
Like Job, though, we may need to persevere. We must continually cling to our relationship with Christ even though we don't understand the reason for the pain. We may even cry out and question God, as did Job.
God may not intervene in the outcome of our physical condition, but He does promise to treat and restore our spiritual health. For it is His heart's desire that not one of us be lost. He, more than even our mothers, wants to kiss away our "ouchies" and make us whole.
Make this your prayer today: "Heal me, O Lord, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Kiss away my 'ouchies' and make me whole."
Acute pain—none of us wants to experience the sudden, often-excruciating sensation. Yet all of us have bouts with it over the course of our lives. The intensity varies. Sometimes it's minor, such as when we were small and skinned our knees, and other times it's more intrusive, the result of a serious accident or disease.
Despite the degree of pain, two common reactions occur. First, we become focused on the pain itself. And second, at some point we seek care and comfort. When we were children, we often ran to Mom for reassurance and care of our "ouchies." Usually she washed out our wound, put on a bandage, and kissed the "ouchy" away.
Unfortunately, all acute pain is not so easily taken care of, and invariably we experience the other end of the pain spectrum, one that demands medical attention. Our pain has now become a signal of a more serious problem and alerts us to our need for more definitive care and treatment. We must seek a physician.
Our emotional and spiritual pain is not unlike our physical pain. It helps us focus and realize the need to attend to some problem. To regain health we need to heed this signal. We must seek treatment from the Physician. And only when we acknowledge our pain and seek help from the Source of health and life can we receive the appropriate treatment, care, and compassion that will lead to the restoration of our spiritual health.
Like Job, though, we may need to persevere. We must continually cling to our relationship with Christ even though we don't understand the reason for the pain. We may even cry out and question God, as did Job.
God may not intervene in the outcome of our physical condition, but He does promise to treat and restore our spiritual health. For it is His heart's desire that not one of us be lost. He, more than even our mothers, wants to kiss away our "ouchies" and make us whole.
Make this your prayer today: "Heal me, O Lord, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Kiss away my 'ouchies' and make me whole."
Used by permission of Health Ministries, North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists.
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