I have experienced trauma.
Perhaps you have experienced trauma.
Much of humanity, at one point or another, will experience some form of trauma. It comes with being human and living in a fallen world. Some of us are impacted far more deeply because experiences and responses vary greatly. Not all who experience traumatic events or highly stressful situations develop symptoms of trauma, but others feel its impact deeply.
The Darkness of Trauma
Trauma has a way of bringing darkness into the lives of those who have experienced it.
Memories haunt–snuffing out the light.
Dreams torment–making the dark nights even darker.
Fear suffocates–causing even the brightest moments to be clouded with gray.
Feelings of worthlessness shroud the traumatized in darkness.
Pretending “it never happened” is the blackest hole of all.
Sneaky Deception
For those of us who have lived with the impact of trauma, it is not uncommon for us to try to push down our trauma, stuffing it into the darkest recesses of our souls so we don’t have to keep experiencing it. We try to avoid thinking about it and hope it will simply go away. The thought of talking about it can make us fear we will relive it all over again, so we push it down even further and try to pretend everything is okay.
But the sneaky trick with trauma is that it doesn’t disappear into the dark. On the contrary, it only grows larger in darkness.
Therefore, trauma will not heal when left to incubate in the dark. Only when light is allowed to shine directly on the wounds do they begin to heal.
A little light goes a long way.
A mere flicker of light holds the power to shatter the darkness.
A spark of light can ignite hope.
Light may come in myriad ways–
- a hand to hold when we feel alone
- a listing ear to graciously hear our woe
- a book with other’s words illuminating truth
- a journal filled with our words– our story finally released
- a prayer leading us to the source of Light …the only Light which can extinguish all of our darkness
Jesus
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.
John 1:5, NLT
All other light fades in comparison to the Light of Christ. His light holds all power to heal the deepest wounds, to expose the darkness of trauma for what it is, and to cleanse us from the sins done by us and to us.
Just as the first ray of sun on the horizon chases away the blackest night, so one glimpse of the love of Jesus shines hope into the bleakest soul. For, where His light is, darkness cannot remain.
More than any program, self-help book, or therapy model, the Light of Jesus holds the power to extinguish all darkness– including trauma.*
…”I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” ~Jesus
John 8:12
In Him, we have the ability to walk in the light as he is in the light. We have the opportunity to be healed from all our trauma. Memories, fear, anxiety, nightmares, and flashbacks can all be eradicated when we let Jesus shine the light of his love into our deepest darkness.
The darkness of trauma does not have to be our forever story.
(*I am not saying there isn’t a place for therapy. Therapy is helpful for many–and critical for some. What I’m saying is that there is another way to chase away the darkness that envelops a traumatized soul, but you have to pursue Him. Often, therapy is a necessary stepping stone on the path toward freedom.)
