It's almost healed now...I wore a quarter-inch patch of skin off my left hand between the thumb and index finger from a day of digging and pushing long-handled yard tools a few weeks ago. The top surface of skin just pulled away and exposed the tender pink layer beneath. It was just painful enough to be annoying for a few days but I watched the gradual healing process as the body provided a coating of protective serum that eventually hardened to a scab. Now the scab has dried and broken off and the healing process is just about complete. I thought about the healing process and how it cannot be rushed. The protection of the wound and formation of replacement skin takes time. And, I suppose, that is true for our relationships with others. When we have worn off a patch of skin in our relationship with others, tender nerves can be exposed and there is pain for a time. But as we allow the healing presence of the Lord to begin with a request for forgiveness the circulation system of love begins to build a protective layer to first ease the pain and to allow the formation of a new tenderness beneath. Ultimately the scab drops off and the relationship can resume, with a new appreciation for the process of healing and restoration.
Proverbs 17:9
Love prospers when a fault is forgiven, but dwelling on it separates close friends.
blessings,
Rob Smith
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