Healing, stress, anxiety

[Chrysostom]

A fearful thing is sin, fearful, and the ruin of the soul, and the mischief oftentimes through its excess has overflowed and attacked men’s bodies also. For since for the most part when the soul is diseased we feel no pain, but if the body receive though but a little hurt, we use every exertion to free it from its infirmity, because we are sensible of the infirmity, therefore God oftentimes punisheth the body for the transgressions of the soul, so that by means of the scourging of the inferior part, the better part also may receive some healing. We are scourged every day, we are full of fear, in anxiety, in trembling. But if we will groan, if we will look up to God, He sendeth to us, not Moses, nor Aaron, but His own Word, and compunction. When this word has come, and taken hold of our souls, He will free from the bitter slavery, He will bring us forth out of Egypt, from unprofitable and vain zeal, from slavery which brings no gain.

Having therefore touched her body, He not only quenched the fever, but also gave her back perfect health. Thus, the disease being an ordinary one, He displayed His power by the manner of healing; a thing which no physician’s art could have wrought. For ye know that even after the departing of fevers, the patients yet need much time to return to their former health. But then all took place at once. Yet hear also the warning: Behold, thou art made whole; sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee. Seest thou how by that which is evident, He hath manifested that also which is obscure? Thus, as unto thy body thou wilt not by taking thought be able to add, though it be ever so little, so neither to gather food; think as thou mayest otherwise. Not our diligence, but the providence of God, even where we seem to be active, effects all. So that, were He to forsake us, no care, nor anxiety, nor toil, nor any other such thing, will ever appear to come to anything, but all will utterly pass away.

How many, who have heard ten times and remained insensible, have afterwards at one hearing been converted! Or rather, not at one hearing; for though they seemed insensible at the ten discourses, yet they gained something, and afterwards showed all at once abundant fruit. It is not possible that such eager desire, such a love of hearing, should fail of its effect. God forbid. No one part is sufficient for our salvation, but there is required first a careful hearing, and a continual recollection; then fortitude, then contempt of riches, and deliverance from all worldly things. These things we declare. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

 

[Silas]

I see your heart’s cry for healing in your body, relief from the weight of stress, and deliverance from anxiety. Those are heavy burdens, and you are right to bring them to the Father in Jesus’ name. He cares deeply about every part of you, your physical body, your racing mind, and the emotions that feel so overwhelming.

Jesus went about doing good and healing all manner of sickness, and His power has not faded. Sometimes healing comes in an instant, a moment when you feel strength rush back and the fog of anxiety lift. I have known seasons where that sudden touch of God came, and everything changed. But more often, the Scriptures also show us a gradual work, a blind man whose sight returned in stages, a body that mends over time through the very processes God designed. Any healing, whether immediate or slow, is divine. The natural recovery of your body is still His handiwork, for He created those restorative processes. And never discount the healing that happens in your mind and emotions, the quiet mending of inner wounds, the scars that lose their power. That is just as real, just as much a work of His grace.

Stress and anxiety often feel like a storm that won’t cease. In those moments, remember that Jesus bore our griefs and carried our sorrows. The prophecy Isaiah spoke about Him included our infirmities and sicknesses. So you can bring all of this to the cross, knowing He understands. When you partake of communion, the broken bread reminds you that His body was broken not only for your sins but for your wholeness. It is a point of contact where you can release your faith, just as those in the crowds reached for the hem of His garment and received. Faith is not always loud or certain; sometimes it is simply a desperate touch, believing that He can, even while still wondering if He will.

Yet we must also hold this truth gently: not every healing comes in the way or timing we expect. Even the apostle Paul pleaded three times for a thorn to be removed, and God’s answer was not removal but sufficient grace. That does not mean you lack faith or have hidden sin. It means we live in a world that groans, where good people suffer and we do not always understand the reasons. Beware of voices that heap condemnation on you if relief doesn’t come instantly; that is not the voice of the Good Shepherd. He never chided the crowds who sought only His benefits, He met them with compassion.

So what do you do in the waiting? You keep praying. You find points of contact where your faith can stretch out: a promise in Scripture held close, the laying on of hands and prayer with others who trust in Him, the quiet moment when you speak His peace over your racing heart. Anxiety loses its grip when you repeatedly cast your cares on Him, even if you have to do it a hundred times a day. Let the peace of Christ rule in your heart, step by step.

I am praying with you, that your body would know His restoring power, that stress would give way to a quiet trust, and that anxiety would be silenced by His perfect love. May you sense His nearness as you wait, and may you find that even in the process, He is doing a deeper work of healing in your soul.