Healing the Wounds of Trauma

leaders will need to have a hammer and nails. If the papers are to be laid at the foot of the cross, they will need a box that is ready for this. The large group is divided into small groups of three where each person has the opportunity to share their deepest pain. The leaders need to decide in advance how best to group participants. Sometimes, it is important to keep men with men, pastors with pastors, and women with women. If the point of the seminar is ethnic reconcili- ation, people from different ethnic groups should be put together. When people trust each other enough to share and hear each other’s deepest pain, healing often takes place. Children should be grouped with at least one adult. In some situations, it may be best for partici- pants to form their own small groups. It may be good to talk about the experience the next day, to dis- cuss how people felt about it and how they could do this with other groups in their churches. Healing takes time. This ceremony will not necessarily heal all hurts instantaneously, but it can be an important part of the process. We are here to take our pain to the cross. We are taught in Scripture that Jesus came not only to bear our sins but also to bear our pain and heal us. In the Gospel according to Matthew we read: “When evening came, people brought to Jesus many who had demons in them. Jesus drove out the evil spirits with a word and healed all who were sick. He did this to make come true what the prophet Isaiah had said, ‘He himself took our sickness and carried away our diseases’” (Mt 8.16–17). Matthew was quoting from the book of Isaiah, which says: “We despised him and rejected him; he endured suffering and pain. . . . But he endured the suffering that should have been ours, the pain that we should have borne. All the while we thought that his suffering was punishment sent by God” (Is 53.3–4). In Luke 4 we learn that Jesus went to the synagogue and read aloud from the book of the prophet Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has chosen me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to 1. Identify the wounds of your heart Read aloud (or tell in your own words) the following:

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Response: Taking Your Pain to the Cross