During my sermon this week, I mentioned the role Desmond Tutu had in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. It was a group established to restore unity in South Africa following the dismantling of apartheid. Nelson Mandela asked who he wanted on the commission. Desmond Tutu wanted victims. Not just those who suffered pain, but those who forgave their enemies.
He called these men and women “Wounded Healers.”
Here’s a quick definition of what that means: Wounded Healers are people who have endured great hardship and pain and use their own brokenness to help others.
In every tragedy, we have the ability to find something redemptive. Because of our brokenness, not in spite of it, we can become agents of change and ambassadors of comfort. We collect tools along with the wounds. These can be lessons we’ve learned, empathy we’ve gained, or some greater pain somebody has been spared because of our suffering.
If you do a search on the term wounded healer, you’ll find that psychology has a long history of studying this phenomenon. But I believe God has a longer history of using our stories – the good parts and bad parts – to transform us into healers.
Think through stories of tragedy and triumph in the Bible. Because Ruth refused to abandon her mother in law after the death of her husband, she became part of God’s story in returning Israel to greatness through her grandson, King David. Or how about Paul, who lived a life of religious perfection but found it bankrupt, and then helped free others from that same religiosity, showing them a path to freedom through faith in Christ alone.
At the point of your greatest pain, God has a way to use your story for someone else’s good. As a wounded healer, you can reach out to someone with a similar hurt. Whatever you experienced, you can find someone else in the same predicament. And then you can show them hope and healing.
Think of it this way. Have you ever broken a bone? I’m sure you’ve got a great story about it! And I’m sure it was no fun wearing a cast and being restricted for at time. But did you know broken bones grow back stronger? It’s true! A portion of that bone actually creates a barrier to support the surrounding area.
Broken bones are stronger. Scar tissue can protect and promote faster healing. Our wounds can heal. Our failures can lead to greater success.
It’s hard to believe because we all want to cover up our faults. No one posts pictures of wounds on Instagram, except to get sympathy. No one brags on Facebook about their failures. We don’t advertise when things go wrong. Instead, we compare ourselves to the pictures of others we see online.
It’s called Social Comparison Theory. It explains how individuals measure themselves against other people. But the problem is we end up comparing our worst day to someone else’s best day. We judge how well our story is based on how many likes, shares, or follows it gets.
What if we judged our story by another measure, a higher one?
What if we found a way to use our scars, bumps, bruises, and even failures for a greater good? What if God transformed that pain into a pathway for hope and healing – not just for us, but for others?
God will rewrite your story if you let him. When you ask him to redeem what you’ve lost, to restore what has failed, and to heal what is broken, he does it. But not without a purpose. And that purpose is so you can help the healing process for someone else.
How is God actively rewriting your story? What pain have you experienced that prepares you to help others?
I never really thought of myself as a “Wounded Healer”, but I guess I am. I was diagnosed with a Stage 4 Glioblastoma brain tumor and given 6-12 months to live, that was 14 years ago…Praise God! Now, I offer hope and encouragement other brain tumor patients. God healed me, and I want to bring all the glory to praise to Him.