REFOCUS
Use this passage from 2nd Timothy as a scripture to focus on, saying each phrase in your mind while you breathe deeply.
…the Lord will deliver me from every evil work
and will preserve me for His heavenly Kingdom,
to Him be glory
for ever and ever.
Amen. (2 Tim 4:18)
READ
Psalm 34:18
The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.
Jeremiah 17:14
Heal me, Lord, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise.
Psalm 103:3-5
Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—
3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
REFLECT
Wrongs and Wounds
In his NYT bestselling book, The Body Keeps the Score, world-renowned trauma expert Bessel van der Kolk writes:
“If you mistake someone’s (coping) solution for the problem to be eliminated, not only are they likely to fail treatment, as often happens in addiction programs, but other problems may emerge.”
Van der Kolk reminds us that we need to look beneath the surface to identify the roots of actions if we are to help others with moving away from them.
As I read those words I thought of a song written by James Taylor. The song describes his reaction to the loneliness he feels. His heartfelt plea reveals someone who is willing to do most anything to solve the lonely ache of his soul. He sings,
“Do me wrong, do me right, right now
tell me lies, but hold me tight.
Save your goodbyes for the morning light,
just don’t let me be lonely tonight.”
Our reactions to Taylor’s words may say a great deal. As Christians we are aware that the solution the singer proposes to his loneliness is wrong. It stands outside the bounds of Christian morality and is destructive. Yet, if van der Kolk is correct, a focus on the behavior without also looking at the underlying causes will yield very little.
Looking at the need and unmet desires the statement reveals is a form of empathy. As we do we feel the sting that the singer points to. He shares a wound so deep that he is willing to accept what he knows isn’t real and can’t last – so as to soothe the ache of his soul – if only for a moment.
As Jesus encountered people in sin he often looked beneath the surface to see the underlying causes. He calls us to do the same. Yet I’m afraid we Christians all too often stop with only identifying the wrong and look no further to see the wound. We are quite proficient in spotting behaviors and labeling them as sinful. Yet while the label may be accurate it is shortsighted.
Often, sins are rooted in the human condition of brokenness, our unfulfilled (and misguided) desires and the pain that emerges from them.
Our approach must be two-fold, then. We must continue to acknowledge and teach about destructive, deadly behaviors that corrupt God’s creation – including his favored creation, human beings. To not warn of these means that some people will continue to pursue them, hoping to find fulfillment, but finding only disappointment.
Yet, we must also look deeper to the wounds that motivate sin and provide a stronghold for the evil one. Those wounds cry out for healing and if no healing is available, the problem that energized the sin will seek to be soothed by any means possible.
Whether we are dealing with our own sin or with others, looking beneath the wrongs to find the wounds is essential. When we do, we find that God both “forgives our sins,” “heals our diseases,” and “satisfies our desires!” The freedom that follows will cause us to join the Psalmist to say, “Bless the Lord O my Soul!”
Perhaps the greatest impact is the connection it provides with God and others. As we confess, we are aware of our common humanity with others and of our mutual dependences on the mercy and love of God. Reconciliation with those we have wronged becomes possible.
Perhaps this is the reason that it is the first of 12 “Psalms of Instruction” (“miskal”). It seems that confession is not only the first step toward recovery from alcohol and addictions, but also on the pathway to a deeper relationship with God.
We as Christians are quick to agree to the theology of sin. Yet true recognition of our own sin and sinfulness is too often kept at an arm’s length as we seek to maintain our appearance in others’ eyes.
Scripture teaches us that such distance keeps us from God’s deepest blessings. I’m likely not the first one to wonder if our local churches could learn something from the example of the twelve-step groups and begin our services in the same manner they do – “Hi. I’m Jim and I’m a sinner.”
RESPOND
Questions to Consider
- Right now what sin am I most aware of in my life or others?
- In what ways has or is that sin destructive?
- Are there ways in which this principle of pain energizing sin relate to that sin?
Prayer
Heavenly Father, I come to You aware of the ways in which I have injured myself and others. I have not loved You with my whole heart. I have not loved my neighbor as myself. I thank You and receive the forgiveness You have given through the death of Your Son, my Savior, Jesus Christ. Grant me, I pray the insight to see the root of my sin, Send the healing touch of Your Holy Spirit and draw close until all my desires are met in you. Amen.
Blessings,
Rev. James R. Needham, PhD, MDiv