Time Does Not Heal All Wounds

I have been thinking of Ethan again. He isn’t quite six months old. It’s a rather bittersweet feeling, one of sweet memories and a bit of wistfulness. Not wistfulness for Ethan; God worked out things for the family so they are providing good care for him even if his family structure is not what they hoped it would be. But wistfulness and longing for our turn to come quickly. It’s been almost six months since we got the first call and I would love to have gotten another call about another birthmom choosing us by now.

These feelings almost snuck up me. Life has been so busy that I haven’t been thinking much about it. I have been content with the things God has placed in our lives to keep us busy and enjoying the freedom we have with no children. But I think it is also true that God has healed that pain. Not completely and maybe not forever. But the raw and incapacitating pain is gone.

I hate the old adage time heals all wounds. Time heals nothing if all you do is sit on your hurts. This should be the new adage: grieving well, God’s presence and hand, and loved ones listening to your story heals wounds. It’s not quite as catchy but certainly true.

So, that is my bit of advice for today. Don’t stuff your wounds, regardless of how big or small they are and regardless of how important or unimportant the world might regard them. Don’t pretend they don’t exist. Don’t sweep them under the spiritual rug and say everything is okay because in the end God is sovereign. He is, but He still commands us to weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice (Romans 12:15). He still created us with feelings and emotions that do not determine our actions but that do need to be expressed. The emotions God created us to feel tells us something about ourselves and the situation that we should pay attention to.

Pass it on: Grieving well, God’s presence and hand, and loved ones listening to your story heals wounds. And it is a wonderful thing to have wounds healed.