The Faithful and Sensible Steward: Healing the Brokenhearted

"And the Lord said, 'Who then is the faithful and sensible steward, whom his master will put in charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.'" Luke 12: 42-43 NASB

We've spent the last few days on these two verses. Just as the Army is "looking for a few good men," Jesus is looking  for faithful and sensible servants. (Click the links to read the previous posts in this series.) Yesterday, we learned that "giving rations" is a little like "feed my sheep." Doing the will of the Father was nourishment to Jesus and it should be to us, as well.

Jesus used an interesting word, therapeia, translated as "of his servants". It indicates care or attention for those in the household. The same word is also used to indicate healing. It's used in Rev 22:2 and translated as "healing", found in the leaves of the trees. 

In a way, the Lord looks for the faithful and sensible steward so that they can provide therapeia, care and healing, for others. Positions in the kingdom of God involve more than giving a moving speech or collecting an offering. Authority in the Kingdom of God (even as a steward) has healing and growth as its objective. 

If we are serving God, we should be helping others live a life of obedience and helping the brokenhearted find healing in Christ alone. 

To help others live obediently we must first live obediently ourselves.

To help the brokenhearted find healing, we must first find our own healing in Christ alone.

At last we've come to the thing that must be done. We, the followers of Christ, must first turn to Him for healing of our fractured, hurting hearts. When we allow Him to peel back the layers of hurt, the decades of injury (big and small), and apply the divine poultice of His love and grace, it changes everything. 

He reveals our weakness and becomes our strength. 

He uncovers our pain and becomes our comfort. 

He removes our fears and becomes our hope.

Who wants their weakness, pain, and fear uncovered? I do. Sounds crazy, I know, but it is only with the divine uncovering that I can know the depths of His strength, comfort, and hope. 

Allowing Christ's gentle fingers to touch my hurting spots is a delicious agony that brings the greatest joy, the sweetest peace, the most overwhelming love. 

This divine love story is worth the risk. Worth the pain. Worth the cost. Once we've embraced His love story, He equips us to help others in their search for healing, for we know the Healer.

When we know the delight of being healed, being whole, we will no longer willingly settle for unnecessary pain.

Our Lord is not seeking for wounded followers who refuse to be made whole. He's looking for disciples who will follow Him. Follow to healing. Follow to service.

Let's not stop short. Let's invite Him into our pain, into our struggle, and allow Him to do the unimaginable in our lives. Let's allow him to heal. Every single hurt.

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Our Father, we bring your our broken, hurting hearts and invite you to uncover, snip away the rottenness, and heal our wounds. In Jesus' name, Amen.