Healing

I was reading in John 5 tonight about the healing pool at Bethesda. The pool where many would come to be healed. There's a swirling motion that happens from time to time in this pool and when this would occur, the blind, the lame, the sick would rush into this pool to be healed. There was an invalid who kept trying to get into the pool, but no one would help him. Jesus came along and asked the man if he wanted to get well. The invalid replied, "Sir I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me." Jesus then told him, "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk." Immediately, the man was cured. This story really struck me. Aren't we all trying to get into the pool? Aren't we all searching for healing and wholeness? Don't we all have something about us that we wish would be fixed? I definitely could say yes to all of this. I'm trying to get through the crowd of people, trying to even dip their toes into the pool, meanwhile, God is outside of the pool, trying to bring the healing to me. I get so caught up in my own method of fixing things that I fail to notice the restoring arms of God waiting for me. I run in the opposite direction because I can't let go of my precious independence and self-sufficiency. I desire healing but only through the method that seems safest to me. Preserving my self-reliance becomes most importance. So I deflect with sarcasm, cover up wounds with sassy remarks, and gloss over my insecurities with cynicism. And even on the days when I've given it my biggest effort, God is still waiting for me to realize that His way is best. Not because it's the easiest way, but because is the most thorough way. The heart is meant to be healed by the One who created it. My home will always be God's arms and therein lies complete restoration.