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Who likes to heal slowly? That’s right, no one. We all want to be healed yesterday from whatever physical or mental ailment or troubled relationship we are experiencing at present. If you are a believer who is going through a slow healing process, it could be—and likely is the case—that God is using your circumstances to grow you for your good and his glory. While you may feel frustrated, disappointed, angry, disheartened, or all four combined with how long it’s taking for healing to happen, here are eight ways God may be using slow healing in your sanctification in Christ:
1. God may be using slow healing to humble you.
Perhaps you were born with certain natural talents, desirable physical attributes, or material blessings that the world puts on a pedestal. You love Jesus and know that God wants you to walk in humility and dependence on him, but it is tempting to trust in these good things God has given you instead of trusting in God himself. In 2 Kings 5 we read about Naaman, who was a “mighty man of valor” (2 Kings 5:1) with much wealth and an esteemed position in society. Naaman was afflicted with leprosy and heard that the prophet Elisha could heal him. Elisha told Naaman to go to the Jordan river and wash seven times in order to be made clean of his disease. Upon hearing this, the mighty man was angry that Elisha didn’t heal him immediately. Naaman thought he was too good to have to wash in the Jordan river at all, let alone seven times:
But Naaman was angry and went away, saying, “Behold, I thought that [Elisha] would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper. Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage. (2 Kings 5:11-12)
Naaman’s wealth and status couldn’t help him. Just as Naaman needed to humble himself before the God of Israel by obeying Elisha’s instructions in order to be rid of his leprosy, so also all people need to humble themselves before God to be rid of their guilt and sin. Slow healing helps us to recognize the foolishness of trusting in worldly things for happiness and self-worth and instead to turn to God, who alone can heal us body and soul.
2. Slow healing encourages believers to turn to the Lord for help.
It is often the case that Christians can become lackadaisical in their prayer life when things are going smoothly. They feel like they have things under control and easily lose their focus on their constant need and duty to go before the Lord in prayer. It may be that the Lord is allowing your healing process to proceed slowly to cause you to lean on him more than ever in prayer. Rapid healing might not bring you to persistently cast your burdens on God in the same way a slow healing process would. Here are just a few Bible passages that encourage us to continue to trust in God and pray to him in times of suffering:
More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. (Rom. 5:3-5)
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:6-7)
Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit. (James 5:17-18)
3. Slow healing helps us to appreciate God’s common grace in everyday life.
There are people who think that God can heal them without using everyday resources such as doctors, medicine, or therapy. And while this is indeed true, God often works by his common grace through both Christians and non-Christians in his order of creation. Physical wounds normally don’t heal overnight; the healing process almost always requires time—possibly weeks or months or maybe even years. Similarly, a deep emotional or mental wound won’t normally heal fully from a quick-fix solution. Deep wounds especially require time and help from others who care about us.
In his common grace God provides us with professionals who have spent many years learning how to treat our physical and emotional wounds and diseases. If someone tells you that you don’t need outside help to treat your problem because God will heal you if you have enough faith, that person is not sharing biblical truth with you. We should praise God for the people who have taken the time to grow in knowledge and skill so they can help others. This is how God has designed the world, and such people are respected for their commitment to excellence in their pursuits:
Do you see a man skillful in his work? He will stand before kings; he will not stand before obscure men. (Prov. 22:29)
4. God may be using slow healing to grow the spiritual fruit of patience in you.
Every Christian wants to have the fruit of patience, but actually being patient is another thing entirely! This is especially true when it comes to the healing process. Just because we don’t see slow healing taking place doesn’t mean it’s not happening. The human body and mind are amazingly complex. We can see, hear, touch, and feel some of what is going on in our bodies but not everything:
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well. (Ps. 139:14)
Just as healing may be taking place in you that you cannot yet perceive, so also God is at work by his indwelling Spirit to conform his children to the image of Christ for his glory in ways they may not perceive at the moment. Joseph didn’t know that one day he would become second only to Pharaoh in ruling over Egypt and end up sustaining his family during the famine to come. Joseph’s faith, character, and leadership abilities all matured as he patiently endured years of unjust imprisoning. It may be that God is at work in the slow healing in your health and relationships for his good purposes in this world—both presently and in the future—even if the outworking of that reality is imperceptible right now. While it’s not easy to do, rejoice when God is growing the fruit of patience in you through slow healing:
Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices! (Ps. 37:7)
Better is the end of a thing than its beginning, and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit. (Eccles. 7:8)
Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. (Rom. 12:12)
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. (Gal. 5:22-23)
5. Slow healing allows compassion to grow in your heart for others who are also going through an extended healing process.
When we see someone struggling with a certain health condition or relationship issue, it’s easy to jump in with advice on how the person can get better, whether it is a suggestion regarding a certain product, online resource, doctor, exercise, therapy, habit, nutritionist, diet plan, or a myriad of other ideas. The list goes on and on. While such efforts may come from a sincere heart wanting to help, they can also send the message that the person who is trying to heal hasn’t considered those options.
Because you are personally going through the process of healing slowly and are well aware of how many avenues you have likely pursued to be whole again, you know how annoying such “helpful advice” can be. While we are called to help one another with advice and encouragement (Col. 3:16; 1 Thess. 5:14), your own slow healing experience will help you be compassionate toward others who are also on a long healing journey.
6. Slow healing can cause you to ponder the complicated nature of hurts that you may have passed over otherwise.
Sometimes we are sure we understand the nature of a wound, whether physical or spiritual, and then we find out later that we were wrong. We might have been told by someone that the answer to our problem is having a positive attitude, being grateful, letting go of the hurt, or some other “quick fix.” The truth, however, may be that the problem stems from a pervasive and complicated issue that occurred years ago or over a long period of time. A slow healing process can force us to examine various elements of past actions and circumstances and see their effects in retrospect more clearly. If we don’t know what the actual root of the wound is, along with any factors that exacerbated the problem, we may end up trying to fix the issue with an ineffective or possibly even harmful treatment. We should not hesitate to seek help from wise and experienced people who can help us in assessing these nuances.
Slow healing can help us to think more in-depth about how the wound occurred, what we could have done, if anything, to prevent it from happening, and how we can better focus on our health going forward to avoid incurring a similar wound in the future.
7. God may be using “slow healing” to get you to “slow down” in life in general.
As Christians seek to serve the Lord in all their various vocations, it’s easy to overcommit and attempt to do far more than is physically, emotionally, or spiritually healthy for us. Additionally, believers have more distractions and temptations than ever in our digital world. Being unable to do our normal activities can provide us with more time to reflect on what we are doing, why we are doing it, and if it’s really worth our time and effort from a kingdom perspective.
In her book Refresh: Embracing a Grace-Paced Life in a World of Endless Demands, British physician Shona Murray recounts how her experience with over-commitment contributed to a state of serious depression and burnout that could have been devastating for her and her family:
I seemed to think that I could push and exhaust the physical part of me, and the mental, emotional, and spiritual parts would be unaffected. I was not seeing myself as God had made me—a limited creature and a complex creature. I was not only underestimating my limitations but underestimating the impact of an exhausted body on my mind and my soul. (pp. 39-40)
Don’t miss out on the opportunity to reassess your lifestyle choices amid the challenges of slow healing. Take advantage of this time of waiting to commit to living a thoughtful and focused Christian life going forward. God knows we are frail and can only handle so much:
As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
For he knows our frame;
he remembers that we are dust. (Ps. 103:13-14)
8. Persevering amid slow healing testifies to the power of Christ in you and your future hope.
The apostle Paul struggled with an infirmity that he asked God three times to remove from him, but God did not grant his petition. Paul writes:
So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Cor. 12:7-10)
When healing goes very slowly, or even ceases at some point, we have the opportunity to testify that our strength doesn’t come from within but rather from the power of Christ in us. Suffering also helps us not to hold on too tightly to the things of this world and to remember that we belong to God. As the apostle Paul declares,
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. (Rom. 8:18)
But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.” (1 Cor. 2:9)
For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison. (2 Cor. 4:17)
Full healing is ultimately in God’s hands, not ours.
Even though we pray and seek out help, it may be the case that we won’t fully heal from an ailment or that a relationship won’t be restored to health. In such times, we must rest in God’s sovereign will and remind ourselves that he sees everything and knows everything. While we may desperately want complete healing to take place, we need to remind ourselves that our days are numbered by God and we don’t fully know how our life fits into God’s grand redemptive plan:
Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. (Ps. 139:16)
But, as it is written,
“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
nor the heart of man imagined,
what God has prepared for those who love him.” (1 Cor. 2:9)
While slow healing can tempt God’s children to lose hope, don’t let it discourage you or cause you to doubt God’s love and care for you in Christ:
“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.” (Matt. 10:29-30)
It’s okay to pray to God for quick healing; it’s okay to ask God to work a fast miracle. He wants us to come to him with all our anxieties and fears. Regardless of God’s answer to your prayers, always remember that you are God’s precious child and this world is passing away. Any scars that remain will one day be gone forever.
Don’t let the devil succeed in getting you to despair in the midst of slow healing. Trust that God will not waste one bit of your suffering; instead, believe God’s word that all things will work together for good through everything he allows in your life (Rom. 8:28). Like the people who saw Jesus perform miracles, one day we also will say, “He has done all things well” (Mark 7:37).
Take heart, dear saint, that one day you will have complete healing—physically, emotionally, and spiritually—and are at this very moment a co-heir with Christ. No one can snatch you out of Jesus’ loving hand, and you are safe and secure in Christ forevermore.
This article was originally published on September 22, 2022.
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