Category Archives: Healing, Overcoming, Pain, Restoration

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Little by Little, Piece by Piece

How long is it going to take?

None of us likes waiting. But waiting is a fact of life. It takes time for embedded emotional wounds to heal. There’s no easy path to wholeness. But, I’m here to say, that it’s worth the time, angst, vulnerability, rawness, and the whatevers to hang in there until the light begins to shine in and your spirits begin to lift.

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I used to email back and forth with a friend that lives in New Mexico. He is a friend that likes words, and writing, sunsets, stray dogs, and the big picture. My book ladies read one of his books where he blended his experiences with his story: PTSD, Vietnam Vet, adjusting to civilian life, his love of caring for abandoned dogs, and coming to terms with God. (Andrew writes here. He is battling the big “C.”)

Andrew shared a true story with me in 2016, and now I share it with you.

“A few years ago Barbara and I were shopping at a Pier One store, when we were startled by a CRASH! An unsupervised child had knocked over a large decorative ceramic plate, and it lay shattered.

The parents were horrified, and offered to pay for the breakage, but the manager demurred, saying it was part of doing business. I looked at the plate, and thought of what it had been just a few minutes before, and asked the manager if I could buy it – full price.

She looked at me as if I had grown a second head, and said, no, I could have it if I cleaned it up. I finally negotiated her up to half-price, and she threw in a box for the pieces. Meanwhile, Barbara was rolling her eyes dangerously far. One is still stuck.

We took the box of bits home, and every evening for months I sat with magnifying glass and ceramic glue, finding the mating pieces and slowly putting them back together. About 80% could be restored. For the rest, there were gaps.

When I was done, Barbara looked at it, and said “I still think you’re an idiot, but I’m glad you saved it.”

The plate is on a custom-made stand, on a shelf, looking over my shoulder as I write. And if a plate can smile, it is smiling.”

My response to Andrew’s story:

“I’m speechless. That’s who we all are. Broken pieces. I wrote about that once. I asked God how He heals us, and He said, piece by piece. It’s so true…and the process takes a life time.”

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An Analogy:

I think I can use an analogy here, that this is what God does with us. God painstakingly puts us back together. Our scars still show, but we are whole. Someone, The Someone, loves us enough to mend us and make us new. And, like Andrew, God wishes to display what He has done for us. God works in us, and I assume He wants to show off this wondrous trophy of His grace.

The thing is doable.

Do you wonder how long it’s going to take until you experience healing? I wish I could answer that it won’t take too long, but most likely it will take quite a while. Only God knows how much time it will take. I do know God will be with you on the journey. It is best to reach for it, rather than ignore it. Give yourself grace in the meantime.

Be patient, be willing, be aware. I’d like to encourage you to invite God to help you. Then you will have extra strength and support.

I wish you well on your spiritual journey.

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My Spiritual Awakening

Developing an inner life with Christ at the center has made all the difference for me. This spiritual practice changed me. I was softening and growing. I was absorbing scripture as I read it. I was increasingly open and honest while reading the Word and seeking God’s face.

Scripture took on a new freshness. I was seeing things as I read that I had not seen before. My perspective altered, little by little. My prayer life took a new turn. My focus was on God as an entity close and personal, who was interested in my prayers, who desired my fellowship, who was engaged in my human struggle, my humanity.

A raw intimacy with God began to grow, borne of increasing familiarity with him and his ways. In a sense, it was like I was being rebirthed as God initiated his divine presence and holiness actively in my life.

Of course, I didn’t realize what was happening to me at the time. All I knew was I was hungry for God. Little did I know, God was awakening me. Everything was significant as things in my world took on new meaning. I was seeing them with new eyes, with the eye of faith.

“The bursting bud, the flow’ring tree, … are miracles we all can see. A life can change, from cruel pain, like sunshine after rain. My heart believes in miracles. O, I believe in God” is how my mother’s mother, Faith Swihart Weigold, wrote it in a song she composed, one that my sisters and I sang as a trio (above picture) and am quoting from memory.

God is doing a beautiful miracle in our lives. We are wise when we embrace his loving touch. Pain comes as we see ourselves with honesty. He is making us new. He has to carve away the stuff that is a hindrance in us. We become more aware of our sin the closer we draw near to God. Then we can deal with it. We are becoming more spiritually sensitive. As a result, we are uncomfortable when our sin causes separation in our relationship. We miss our closeness with God. We will actively initiate steps to restore intimate fellowship with him.

How I see it, we learn, grow and “become” in layers. We also heal, layer by layer, through removing, cleansing, refreshing, embracing, and awakening. Sometimes we get hurt. What we do with our hurt is what matters in the long run. Something is always being discovered, then implemented in our spiritual journey.

Just thought I’d share a few thoughts with you that I’ve been pondering lately.

I wish you well on your spiritual journey.