Advent Journey

Can We Find Healing in Jesus?

Ezekiel 34:15-16

For this devotion about healing, I would like to focus on what Mary does after praising the glory of our Lord.

Mary stays with Elizabeth for three months as they journey in their pregnancies together. The social pressures, judgements, fears and uncertainties must have been immense, but both Mary and Elizabeth trust in the Lord. They trust that He will lead them and be with them until they reach the destination He has planned for them, and that they will do this together.

The beginning of my Family Medicine practice was challenging. No matter how hard I tried, many days I would come home frustrated because I was unable to help certain patients. One day, seeing me deeply discouraged, my mentor reassured me that as family physicians, we can only treat 25% of the patients we see, we can help 35%, and for the remaining 40%, we simply need to journey with them. Allow me to explain.

The 25% of patients we can treat have conditions for which medicine has a cure. For example, by carefully selecting an antibiotic, we can cure an ear infection. The 35% of patients we can help are those with chronic conditions we cannot cure; these are controlled with appropriate treatments for ailments like diabetes and fibromyalgia.

The 40% of the patients with whom we should journey are those with conditions medicine cannot cure. These include those who suffer from degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and cancers, patients with PTSD from years of trauma, and our brothers and sisters who live on the margins of society due to addictions.

Like Mary and Elizabeth, who accompany each other through their pregnancies, God is calling us to journey with our brothers and sisters in their suffering. Jesus will carry the burden and light the way to healing, but He is calling us to be with them.

I would like to leave you with the image of an injured sheep in the loving arms of the Shepherd, surrounded by the rest of the flock, who is walking closely around them, providing love, comfort and companionship on their journey of healing with Jesus.

Paul Cheung
Family Physician
Credit Valley Family Health Team

Prayer:

Loving Jesus, when I feel my suffering and trauma profound and overpowering, like Mary, help me hold onto my faith even amidst despair. When everything seems to fall apart, with a hopeful heart, I turn my eyes to you, Lord, for comfort and healing.

Application:

When worry and illness tend to plunge you into despair and when you long for healing, allow your mind to ponder over this verse: “He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.” 1 Peter 2:24