Proverbs 18:14 says: “The human spirit can endure in sickness, but a crushed (wounded) spirit who can bear?” Our wounded spirit is our emotional hurts and pains. Sometimes, they can be debilitating. They can be caused by many things. Sometimes, we experience deep depression due to a physical cause like chemical imbalance. Sometimes, our emotional hurts are caused by a relational breakdown. Sometimes, they are caused by something someone did to us (like abuse, abandonment, offensive words) or something we did (guilt).

How do we respond to our emotional pain? The wrong way to respond is by (1) denying or hiding it; (2) numbing it by alcohol, drug, eating, sleeping, and whatever it takes to forget; or (3) thinking about it with vengeance, anger, resentment or hate.

The right way to respond is to seek the healing power of Jesus through the Tree of Life. According to Genesis, when we sinned, we lost the Tree of Life, which was the key to an abundant life in God, but according to Revelation, because of what Jesus did on the cross, God will bring the Tree of Life when he restores all things, and therefore, bring healing to everyone. But, this is not just about the future. God calls us bring to the present what is to come in the future.

How do we do that? (1) By loving people who are hurting; and (2) by bringing our hurts and pain to Jesus through meditation, and allowing God’s love, presence, and grace to redeem our hurts and pain. This is an important spiritual practice that can bring inner healing.