As some of you know I work in healthcare. My job is to help fix peoples bodies. To get them stronger so they can get out of the hospital and get back home, or play a sport, or play with their grandkids again after illness or injury. I enjoy my job but sometimes I feel I wish I could help heal a persons heart more than their body.
See there is thing that happens when you start spending more time with Jesus...... You start seeing beyond the exterior to their hearts. This is an absolutely beautiful thing and a horribly saddening thing. Some days I feel like I see so much sorrow and pain I can't take it anymore, but then a small God wink and I find a jolly soul with a joyful heart; I'm revived!
I've been praying God helps me hear him better and be more present with my patients to REALLY See them, not just focused on my own agenda. To look them in the eyes. It may seem a little silly to say that, but how many times in the day do we look right through people focused on our own tasks?
Each one of my patients needs love, needs to be cared for, needs healing, needs God. No matter how cranky or mean they are to me, they all need someone to care enough to look past that to their heart. It is amazing what happens when I take the time to do this.
This week, I had one patient that was really cranky when I saw them, complaining and refusing certain things. At first I bristled, but then I stopped and took a deep breath and asked God to help me. I changed my way of doing things a little and the pt. suddenly burst into tears and revealed a very sad personal story to me. The next day I came to see them, half way through treatment they asked me to come near and they gave me a big hug. If I had not taken the time to breath and ask God what He wanted me to see I would have missed the brokenness in this patient's heart and potentially done more damage. Instead some healing happened :)
- 1 Samuel 16:7 "....People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” NIV
Thank goodness Right?! On any given day if you caught me at the right moment you might catch my crabby cranky side and say to yourself "Holy Cow that girl's got issues!" But you know in those circumstances when I am that way, are the times I need love the most. I am probably acting like that because I forgot my connection with God and someone else said something mean to me, or I woke up with bad hair, or my cat wouldn't let me sleep last night. :) Crazy Cat! LOL But honestly if someone really stopped to look at me..... In my eyes.... into my heart.... they would see I just really needed a kind word and a loving smile to turn things around.
Trying to keep this in mind when someone is chewing you out over something you didn't do is really hard. Sometimes it is even hard when people are just thoughtless and cut you off on the freeway or cut in line in front of you at the grocery store and you were clearly standing there. Oh believe me I've been there! :) But each one of us act like this because we are hurting inside. Sin has broken us and damage our hearts.
This week was a good reminder for me to keep daring to look beyond the exterior and pray that God helps me see the heart. That way maybe through helping people heal their bodies, I can help heal a little part of their heart by the love God pours into mine.
So I dare you to pray this prayer and see what happens. Dare to look beyond the rough, mean, cranky exteriors that rub you and look to the heart. See what God really wants you to see and be prepared to be inspired to give love to another hurting one out there. The blessing you will receive are far beyond measure! And another heart, maybe even yours, closer to being whole.
Blessings,
Kori
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