Posts Tagged ‘healing’

How to Suffer Well Through Sickness | Blog on Authentic Intimacy

TW; mention of assault and trauma.

This past spring, I spent 30 nights alone in the hospital without my loving husband by my side. One night, as I laid in my hospital bed, I thought back on the decision I made to marry him. Little did I know how my decision three years ago would impact me today as I walked through this season of physical suffering.

Years ago, as I was trying to figure out if I should marry the man I was dating, I asked my counselor how to make this important decision. She responded, “Does he suffer well?” The question caught me off guard. After thinking about it, I replied, “Yes; he’s gone through cancer, found joy in the midst of pain, and continues to follow God.” That day I knew I was going to marry my now-husband, Zack.

In our marriage, we have experienced a lot of suffering. When we were first married, I worried about my husband’s cancer returning. Turns out, I’m the one who has struggled with sickness! Over the past three years, my body has experienced vaginismus (a condition involving involuntary muscle spasms in the pelvic floor muscles that can make sexual intercourse painful, difficult, or impossible), miscarrying our eight-week-old baby, frequent sinus headaches, and, most recently, achalasia: A rare disease that causes my esophagus to not function properly.

3 Bible Verses for Healing from Sexual Shame

With a past filled with sexual abuse, promiscuity, and an unhealthy sex education, I lacked a healthy view of sexuality. The biggest lie that I believed was that I was sexually broken.

My view of sex was far from the truth that God promises in His love letter. I had two distorted and conflicting views of sex:

  1. My experiences taught me that sex is bad and shameful.
  2. The movies taught me that sex is the best thing this world has to offer.

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How to Heal from Sexual Abuse

How to Heal from Sexual Abuse _ JoyPedrow.com

Five years ago I thought I would never heal from the rape I experienced my freshman year of college. My nights were filled with tears and my days were filled with doubts. Why did this happen? Does God allow rape? (Check out the answer to this question on Bible.com.)

With countless unanswered questions and tears in my eyes, I surrendered my life to Jesus. I still doubted that he could heal me, but I believed I needed a Savior. On my own, I would never find healing. My heart was a wreck and I needed Jesus to give me a new one.

Maybe you, just like me, often wonder, is healing even possible? How do I find healing? Could Jesus really heal me from the pain of sexual abuse? Let me share one important truth with you… (more…)

4 Tips for When You Fear the Future

Q: “What should I do when my world is falling apart? What should I do when I’m scared of the future? So many things are happening in my life and I don’t know how to comprehend it all.” – Anonymous reader.

A: Dear reader, I want you to know – you are not alone. I’ve been there. I’ve reached points where my world was falling apart. (Read my story.) I feared the future because I could not control my current situations or what would happen. If this is how you feel, you have reached a scary moment. I promise you, something beautiful is about to happen. A beautiful gift happens when you allow God to have control of your life. My freshman year of college, I was depressed and believed absolutely nothing could heal my broken heart. That was the moment I gave God control. In the pain, brokenness, uncertainties and lack of control, God worked miracles and brought healing to my life. He can bring healing to you too. (more…)

Can God heal our hurting hearts?

JoyPedrow.com

I’ve seen God work miracles in my life and have experienced a healing that could only have come from God, yet there are still some issues that I struggle believing that he will heal.

My freshman year of college I was in a very dark place. Rape can destroy a girl. It takes her heart and makes it feel used, broken, worthless, and disgusting. During the heartache, I believed God could never heal me.

How could God make me feel valuable, loved, protected and beautiful? (more…)