So, this revelation in the life of Josh Duggar seems to have touched quite of a nerve with the American public. The polarization in the media is obvious; either Josh is a fine young man who made a mistake. and who has proved himself. and he deserves a second chance; or he is a child molester, a villain, despicable abuser, worthy of death, or at minimum, worthy of prison. I have heard that many fault the Duggars for not having their son arrested when he was 14, and having him sent to jail, to rot, or to at least have a criminal record for the rest of his life. Yet, some of these are also those who campaign for looser and looser restrictions upon sex; in many ways their arguments create a conundrum.
I wonder if what I am hearing is connected to our emotional trauma. The sexual revolution has left us with a society of victimization. Sex taken out of context cannot help but bring with it disaster. Yet it feels so good, and if feels so right, and it is so exhilarating in the now, that we do not really care in the moment if we will be lacerated by it in the future. That is, until we find out that our rampant immorality hurts. "If it feels good, do it," that is our mantra, "As long as it causes no physical pain." But what about the psychological and emotional trauma? What about the impact that the perversions may have on our identity, on our inner sense of security, and on our future orientation.
The truth of the matter is that we are in need of another form of sexual revolution. We need a revolution in the direction of wholesomeness, in the direction of dignity, in the direction of purity; we need some way to get away from our sense of worthlessness and shame. We need some way to recover from the ravages of our broken spirits. Rampant immorality has more than ravished our bodies, it has also ravished our souls. Deep, deep down within, our inner humanity has broken.
That is why the Duggar story draws out so much animosity and venom. It is the bitterness of our souls crying out; here was a person and a family that we thought might have offered us some sort of solution. Here is a family that seemed on the surface so unmarred from our sexual pain, so immune to our sense of sexual exploitation and victimization. Thus, this revelation is almost like a corporate betrayal; as the pure and pristine in our culture has turned out, it appears, to only be a painted-up vulture.
I am sticking to my understanding that Josh Duggar is a vulture no longer. Vulture once, I agree; but I believe that Josh Duggar has experienced a life transformation. You see, I believe in character change. I believe in a transformation of spirit. I believe that the healing of the spirit is real. I believe that one can be healed and recover from not only criminality, but also from deep emotional trauma.
And so I pray for all those who in their bitterness spew forth their hatred and dump it all on the Duggars. This bitterness, I believe, arises from a heart gone astray, a heart which is infected with a wounded and a broken spirit. These wounds have been real; they have penetrated to our national soul; and yet, even now, the Lord is in the business of healing the spirit. I have seen his healing take place, not only in my own soul, but in other souls who have let the Lord God carry their burdens. It is a healing that take place over time. It is a healing that comes through much struggle. Yet, it is also a healing that brings hope and comfort and joy Yes, it brings peace in the midst of despair and it brings restoration to the one who is wounded in spirit.
Recently, I have been reading about the reality of true healing prayer. Healing prayer brings about inner healing from God. It senses the heart of God in the midst of the times that one has been most seriously wounded. In healing prayer, God touches the heart in a dynamic way, in ways that could not be manufactured or brought about by human intervention. Healing prayer addresses the hidden wounds of the soul on a spiritual level rather than only effecting the emotional and psychological level.
After hearing the hate and the venom directed toward the Duggars it is clear that we stand in need of deep, inner healing. This is a fact that we realize, and it keeps our psychiatrists' benches full. What has it done to our prayer closets? Is healing prayer being utilized by our churches? The Great Physician is in, perhaps it is time that you sit down with a brother or sister and seek out His intervention.
No comments:
Post a Comment