Never Beyond Repair

I spent a couple of hours recently in the office of an orthopedic surgeon with a hamstring injury that had developed into a chronic inhibitor of fun. One of the first questions the doctor asked me was, “When did this injury occur?” After recounting the original sports injury in 2004, the doctor offered a disheartening opinion: This is an old tear, which has  developed scar tissue over the past 11 years. You can incorporate regular stretching exercises into your day to get some relief, but I’m afraid this old injury will, most likely, be one of those things you JUST HAVE TO LIVE WITH!

Wait a minute…  JUST HAVE TO LIVE WITH? He didn’t just say that, did he?  Are you kidding me?  I pondered asking the front desk for a refund.

Settling for life with a limp is not a favorable solution for anyone who thrives on activity. It definitely wasn’t the answer I was hoping to hear, nor one I was going to embrace.  But that answer caused me to think about these crazy injuries that produce a limp. They don’t stop at the physical level.  How many of us have navigated a torn soul or the mutilated muscle of the heart? How many of us wake up with the chronic and debilitating pain of scar tissue left over from emotional wounds, decades old. We limp through life, resorting to the fact that we might experience some limited relief now and then, but for the most part, we need to learn to live with the pain, to navigate around it, to  press through these throbbing, distorting limitators of the soul.

Why did I go to the doctor that day? I had one gnawing question: Can this old hamstring be restored to wholeness?  That’s a fair question and one that many of us may ask.  We awaken each morning with the same soulish question, “Will my heart ever know wholeness again?”

I’m actually minorly grateful for this hamstring injury because it has caused me to pause and ponder the deeper issues of disrepair in our lives. In my pondering, I happened upon an account in the Bible in the book of Ezekiel [chapter 37]. The prophet, Ezekiel, is brought to a valley filled with dried out bones, left from the victims of some grueling defeat. God asks the prophet a question, “Can these dry bones becoming living people again?”

I might have winked and smiled back at God with a sarcastic reply, “Is this a trick question?”  The answer would seem quite obvious. These fellows had enjoyed their “day in the sun”. It’s over for them.

But this prophet hesitates.  The best answer he could muster was, “Oh God, only you know the answer to that!” The limitless, creative God gave Ezekiel the object lesson of all time:  He began to join the bones together with new ligaments and tendons; He threaded muscle over them and enclosed that muscle with wrinkle-free flesh. Ah, they looked good, but…. pretty useless.  They were still lifeless.

Until…

He breathed His own breath into their dead carcasses so that everyone of them could live again!

Some of us may feel like those dead, dry bones.  Maybe your hope is gone!  Whatever condition you are in as you read this post, I want you to know God intimately sees what is dead, severed, and seemingly beyond repair in your soul. He desires to restore you at the deepest point of your woundedness.

Our role is as simple as two words, “Lord, Help! [Psalm 107]   Only you know where my deepest healing needs to begin.”

This Christmas Season, allow Him to breathe fresh life into your soul. “No matter what was intended to harm you, God’s arms hold you!” writes author Ann Voskamp.

Make an effort every day of this Christmas season to slow down and recover your soul.   As you open God’s Word, He will open his mouth and breathe His life into you!

There is no soul so broken that it cannot be healed!  Your injury is not beyond repair.

Beauty awaits!

Patty

Anchor of Hope: “Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for Him to act.”
Psalm 37:7 (NLT)
[For ongoing help on your healing journey: Consider connecting with a local church, enrolling in a Celebrate Recovery Group, a Betrayal and Beyond Group, a women’s Bible study group, or meet with a counselor or coach in your community.]

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