Have you ever gone through something difficult that left you feeling emotionally beat up? We’ve all experienced it at one time or another. Sometimes those hurts turn out to be devastating, and we’re left feeling broken. When something is missing in our lives and we don’t know how to fix it, only one Person can restore us and makes us whole again.

Apart from God, human beings are frail. Plenty of people struggle with issues like alcoholism, drug addiction, poor health, emotional or physical abuse, divorce—the list goes on and on. God has healing on every level already set aside for us, and He’s waiting for us to accept it. “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours” (Mark 11:24, NIV). Healing is His will concerning us, and it will manifest in our minds and bodies if we let it.

The “if we let it” part may seem strange to hear, but we actually play a part in our own healing. There are things about the physical body and the mind that even experts in the field don’t understand. But God understands them all, and when we have faith in His promises, healing happens. “God, pick up the pieces. Put me back together again. You are my praise!” (Jeremiah 17:14, MSG). We can either agree with the Word of God and let healing flow, or let doubt keep it from us like a dam holding back water.

In the New Testament, we read about broken people who accepted healing from God. Jesus restored wholeness to a woman who had hemorrhaged for twelve years (Mark 5:25-29, 34), and He cleansed lepers (Luke 17:12-19). When a centurion begged Jesus to heal his ill servant, Jesus did so after marveling at the man’s faith in Him. “And Jesus said to him, I will come and restore him. But the centurion replied to Him, Lord, I am not worthy or fit to have You come under my roof; but only speak the word, and my servant boy will be cured. Then to the centurion Jesus said, Go; it shall be done for you as you have believed. And the servant boy was restored to health at that very moment” (Matthew 8:7, 8, 13, AMPC). In all of these cases, the common denominator was the people’s belief in His healing power.

Our thoughts play a part in healing, but they can also play a part in destruction. In the Old Testament, King Saul was an example of this. Saul was strong, healthy, and found favor with God, but over time, his jealously and hatred for David consumed him. Saul repeatedly tried to kill David, and in the end, he died a broken and shattered man (1 Samuel 31:1-6).

God wants to heal us, whether our brokenness is physical, emotional, or spiritual. One touch from Him brings a joy that permeates our entire being. “A happy heart is good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing, but a broken spirit dries up the bones” (Proverbs 17:22, AMPC). The deciding factor is whether we choose to accept what He has for us, or push it away.