Emergency Room

"He now showed them the full extent of his love." John 13:1


We had a late night at the Emergency Room last night. Really, with four boys, it's amazing we don't spend more time and money at the ER. Apparently, a wrestling match broke out in my 2 oldest boys' room, which led to the back of my 8-year-old's (Morgan) head on the corner of a cedar chest. So, he and I trucked on to the ER to get a few stitches. He ended up with three. We've been pretty fortunate.  This summer we had our first broken bone (shoulder and elbow) and these are the first stitches we've had.  There will be more to come, I'm sure. 

Instead of a shot to numb the area, they used this liquid that sits on the wound and surrounding area for about 30 minutes. After about 20 minutes with the numbing agent on there, Morgan said, "I kinda think now that we didn't need to come because it doesn't much hurt more anymore." Of course, I explained to him that it was just numb, but they still needed to sew it up so it would heal right. And we often settle in the same way when Jesus wants to give us the FULL EXTENT of His love. We get half-healed from Jesus, we get a little dose of forgiveness, and we get a little distance from the 'injury' and we think, "Oh, I'm okay now, Jesus."

You're not okay.  You've grown numb to the pain, you're feeling better, but you're not okay.  You're still bleeding because you ran back out to play too soon.  And you won't heal right if you won't just be still and let Him work on you.  Jesus wants to sit with us a while longer. Jesus doesn't just want to numb you from the hurt in your heart. He wants to sew it up and heal it. There's a big difference. When we don't let Jesus all the way in to heal our hearts and spirits, we end up not healing the way we should and we end up with scars. Don't settle for partial healing. Let the Great Physician all the way into your brokenness. Let Him sew you up. And let the healing begin. Get the FULL EXTENT of His love.  All of it.  Not just a little.  Every last drop.  In the meantime, no more wrestling around the furniture.