“When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition
for a long time, he asked him, ‘Do you want to get well?’”
John 5:6 (NIV)
A few years ago, I walked into an appointment with my counselor, Jim, wishing I’d canceled.
So much felt unsettled in my life. I felt utterly unmotivated to talk and overly motivated to cry.
“Lysa, do you have the desire to heal from this?” he asked.
Of course! But how could I possibly start healing when there was so much still unresolved in my life?
I thought those who did wrong things would realize they were wrong. And then surely they would say they were sorry and seek to make things right between us. Then I would consider forgiveness. And then I could possibly heal.
But as Jim kept talking, I started to realize I might never feel like things were fair. Even if the people who hurt me suddenly became repentant and owned all they’d done, that wouldn’t undo the past. That wouldn’t instantly heal me or make any of this feel right. Therefore, I had to separate my healing from their choices. My ability to heal cannot depend on anyone’s choices but my own.
It reminded me of something I learned during a trip to the Holy Land, when my guide taught about the two healing miracles Jesus performed in Jerusalem. The first was a healing at the pools of Bethesda.
In John 5, we read about a man who couldn’t walk. “When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, ‘Do you want to get well?’” (John 5:6). The man’s response was surprising. He gave Jesus an excuse based on the fact that no one would help him. Isn’t it amazing that the man was so focused on what others needed to do that he almost missed what Jesus could do?
Jesus instructed him to get up, pick up his mat and walk - and “at once the man was cured” (John 5:9). The healing didn’t involve anyone but the man and Jesus.
The other healing miracle is found in John 9 and focuses on a blind man. In this story, the disciples wanted to know whose actions caused the man’s blindness. Surely someone was at fault.
But Jesus said, “This happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him” (John 9:3). Jesus then spat on the ground, mixed up some mud, rubbed it on the blind man’s eyes, and instructed him to go and wash in the pool of Siloam. Notice that Jesus didn’t make healing contingent on other people doing or owning anything.
Jesus gave the instruction. The blind man obeyed. Jesus healed. The man moved forward.
My guide in Jerusalem said, “One of these miracles shows us a new way to walk, and the other shows us a new way to see.” I couldn’t grab my journal to record this revelation fast enough.
Moving forward and seeing beyond our current darkness is between us and the Lord. We don’t need to wait for others to do anything. We must simply obey what God is asking of us right now. God has given us a new way to walk. And God has given us a new way to see.
My healing is my choice. And your healing? It’s with the utmost compassion that I say your healing is your choice too. I know how incredibly hard all of this is. But we can heal. We can forgive. We can trust God. And none of those beautiful realities can be held hostage by another person.
Lord, thank You for inviting me to see and walk in a new, healed way today. Forgiveness and healing may feel incredibly hard to choose, but I know You give me the strength to walk through these processes. Thank You for making me more like You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
- Lysa TerKeurst
Provided by "Proverbs 31 Ministries"
