Ice pack on my Soul

(written Nov 2014)

I’m thinking out loud as I sit here with an icepack on my shoulder.  :-/

I feel quite wimpish to say that I have ended up crying during physical therapy sessions on my shoulder several times this week.  The poor gal wasn’t sure what to do with me…and my partially “frozen” shoulder isn’t a bad case but it kills, what she does to me.  And now I have to do the exercises at home…ugh.

I’m very determined, though it feels like torture innoculation or something…I’ve almost cried doing it to myself, but I want my shoulder back!  So I inflict pain upon myself because I believe it’s going to make a difference.  I do have my doubts!

 

I have to wonder if this physical principle can carry over to when God seemingly inflicts pain on us.  He’s after strong joints and better strength & flexibility and freedom of movement…in our lives.

 

Some possible parallels:

 

Shoulder:                                                                   Soul:

 

Physical trauma/gradual debilitation                      Emotional trauma/gradual debilitation

 

Unknowing neglect of joint/muscle                        Denial, neglect of soul

 

Physical Pain                                                        Psychological pain/spiritual pain

 

Limited motion                                                     Limited caring/giving/awareness

 

Annoyance w/exercises                                         Annoyance facing self

 

Decreased strength                                               Decreased resilience

 

Physical Therapy = a choice to cooperate, to embrace temporary pain to work toward increased motion (slowly).

It is “annoyance with a purpose”! 🙂 It leads to increased strength and the ice afterwards helps the pain and inflammation go down.

 

Where do I need to apply PT principles to my soul?

 

Perhaps there’s been a trauma big or small…that you have not revisited.  It’s not going to just go away.  The Dr. told me about my shoulder, “the sooner the better; the longer you wait the harder it is.”  It will cause pain and that’s so that you know it’s there and it needs attention.

 

If you notice limited ability, capacity or joy, could that point to a need in your soul?  What about the annoyance of taking a look at it and asking God what he’s drawing attention to?

It’s annoying because it takes us where it hurts, where we don’t want to look, but it also begins the path toward increased movement, freedom and strength in our inner lives…leading to the ability to love freely and give of ourselves…

 

I noticed improvement after 2 weeks of PT on my shoulder…I think we can apply the same process to our souls if we pay attention to the pain.

Try this soul therapy exercise:

 

• Stop, sit, deep breath, in and out, close eyes, wait…
• Then notice what is the first anxiety that comes, don’t push it away, let it sit with you and tell you something about your soul.
• Listen, breathe, accept, open your eyes.

 

What did you learn?  It may be painful.  That’s a start.

 

And what could the “ice pack” be?  Something that soothes and numbs after a hard workout to chase away inflammatory thoughts…?

Maybe ice cream! 🙂  Definitely soothes the soul.

 

Better would be soothing music of God’s all encompassing love for you or a talk with a friend about what you noticed or a moment of casting a care upon the One who cares.  (1 Peter 5:7)