“We search for happiness. We long for peace. We hope for love. And the Lord showers us with an amazing abundance of blessings. But intermingled with the joy and happiness, one thing is certain: there will be moments, hours, days, sometimes years when your soul will be wounded.” Neil A. Anderson

We’ve all been wounded and need healing. The words in the scriptures that assure us Christ will come with “healing in His wings,” are beautiful to me.  I visualize his arms reaching out, ready to embrace, comfort, and heal me whenever I call on Him. I feel like Lehi when he said, “I am encircled about eternally in the arms of his love.” While I know it’s through my Savior’s grace that I’m healed, I recognize that the healing He offers usually requires some effort on my part.  When I’m willing to listen to the Spirit and do the work I’m led to do, I progress more rapidly, and am blessed with bright moments of joy. The Lord is always right here with me, leading me to the people and tools that will best teach and heal me.

 “O Lord my God, I cried unto thee, and thou hast healed me.”

Psalm 30:2

We’re used to instant gratification in our high-speed, high-tech world, but healing requires time and patience, along with hard work. It can be a slow, difficult quest, but those who seek healing will find a path perfectly designed for them by the Lord. Most days, I feel like I’m still at the beginning of a long road, but looking back reminds me I’ve made progress.  Here are some of the tools that help me on my journey. 

Pray without ceasing. Staying close to Heavenly Father and Jesus through daily, nearly constant, prayer, has been my solace. My heart is comforted knowing that Jesus has felt everything I feel, I’m not alone, and it’s OK to feel what I feel and share it all with Him.

Take Time to Grieve. When we experience trauma or loss, it leaves a gaping wound in our spirit—an injury nobody can see.  Life goes on around us, while we stand there in shock, devastated and disoriented. We need time to catch our breath, find our way, grieve the loss of the life we knew before.  Practicing self-compassion, treating ourselves with tender care during this painful time, will help steady the ground under our feet. It’s not easy to learn to say no and accept our limitations without feeling guilty.  When we begin to come out of the darkness, serving others is like a salve. As we open our hearts and use our hands to lift others, our burdens are lightened.

Reach out for help. When my heart is hurting, I want to crawl under the covers and hide. While that may be what I need for a little while, I’m mostly hiding from myself, my feelings, my pain.  Healing requires feeling the pain, addressing it, moving through it.  Some experiences are too hard to face alone, and often we don’t have the knowledge we need to find our way through the maze of difficult feelings. Professional counseling has been instrumental in my healing process. I’ve also found comfort by reaching out to safe, loving friends, who are strong enough to listen and sit with me in my pain.

Put feelings, struggles, and thoughts down on paper.  Journaling has been an eye-opening, soul wrenching, and freeing practice for me. Revisiting painful experiences takes courage!  It’s grueling work.  As I write out the hurt, the anger, the fear, the regrets, and the sorrow, I make discoveries about myself and others.  I challenge and explore my perceptions, my actions, and my mistakes. In those moments of complete honesty and humility, the Lord blesses me with better understanding and more forgiveness for myself and those I love.

Take care of our bodies. Even on a good day, this one is hard, but my mind is calmer and clearer when I eat well, exercise, and breathe. If I resist the call of chocolate and use one of the other tools instead, I make tiny leaps forward.  Handling challenges is much easier with a strong, healthy body. Doing these things for myself reminds me that I matter; I am worth caring for.

Read good books. When I find a great book and do the work suggested, I’m amazed at the insights I discover. Some books that have been beneficial in my healing are:

Daring Greatly (Brené Brown), Great Day Every Day (Max Lucado), Inner Bonding (Margaret Paul), The Artists Way (Julia Cameron), Boundaries (Henry Cloud and John Townsend), Mindfulness An Eight Week Plan for Finding Peace in a Frantic World (Mark Williams and Danny Penman) This one is best as an audio book.

Listen to uplifting music. Music has magical healing qualities. Uplifting music reaches inside me, brings up my tears, turns my aching heart to my Savior, and reminds me I will survive this latest crisis. My personal recording artist from Heaven is Hilary Weeks. For more than 20 years, she’s been there for me, speaking straight to my heart. I thank God for the gift of her music and testimony.

Here are some of my favorite Christian “fight songs” to try when you need reminding that you can do this crazy hard life.

Hilary Weeks—”Tell Your Heart to Beat Again” “The Beginning” “Brave”

Calee Reed—”The Comeback” “Broken and Beautiful” “Giants Fall”

Mandisa—”Stronger” “Overcomer” “Say Goodbye “

Hold on to the truths we know. Though it’s sometimes painful, going to church and attending the temple always bless me. Studying the Book of Mormon and General Conference talks has been a strength to me throughout my life and is a source of comfort and guidance in the dark. In the Book of Mormon, fasting is mentioned in close connection with mourning, and fasting has brought the Comforter close in my grieving. I’ve found hidden treasures during Topical Guide searches on trust, fear, joy, and hope. I feel hope as I read about faithful people who have gone through painful experiences. Their stories are resolved, their lessons learned.  I’m in the middle right now, but like those who’ve come before me, trusting in the Lord, I will have a victorious ending.

“…Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” Psalm 30:5

Practice gratitude. Life is still beautiful.  When I focus on all that is right and good and sweet in my life, noticing the miracles and blessings all around me, I feel the love of my Savior and know I will be OK.

 “My brothers and sisters, it is my promise to you that increasing your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ will bring you added strength and greater hope. For you, the righteous, the Healer of our souls, in His time and His way, will heal all your wounds. No injustice, no persecution, no trial, no sadness, no heartache, no suffering, no wound—however deep, however wide, however painful—will be excluded from the comfort, peace, and lasting hope of Him whose open arms and whose wounded hands will welcome us back into His presence.” Neil A. Anderson