"Night and day among the tombs and on the hillsides he was always crying out and bruising himself with stones." Mk 5:5
No family is without its struggles and demons. Some live as best they can with addiction. Others wrestle with mental illness and abuse, and are forced, like the family of the man with the unclean spirit, to watch their loved ones bruise themselves beyond recognition. Staying calm and peaceful in situations like this can feel impossible and overwhelming.
In situations like this, it is often the people without the addiction or mental illness who most need Jesus' steadying hand. Only when we summon the faith to let go and hand ourselves over to the Lord for direction and healing, will we find the courage to accept the things we cannot change and seek the wisdom of God to know what is possible.
Jesus can be our healer, but we have to allow him to help us. When we wrestle with our own demons and shame without asking for help we are like people trying to hold back the tide. Getting some emotional distance from those we seek to help is sometimes our best strategy and gives us the distance to discern how to take the next best step for healing.
Today, pray for someone seeking to recover from addiction.
How do you handle the demons in your heart and family?
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