An Introduction to Inner Healing
An Introduction to Healing of Memories
Henry A. Virkler, Ph.D., Professor of Counseling (Retired)
Palm Beach Atlantic University
Revised 2013, 2023
I. INTRODUCTION
A. What is healing of memories?
B. There are a wide variety of opinions about inner healing.
C. At one extreme are Hunt and McMahon, who suggest in The Seduction of Christianity, that it is a form of sorcery, a "seductive deception" that is part of the great delusion that the Bible warns will sweep the world in the last days (p.7).
D. On the other hand, there are a number of Christian counselors who believe God has used it to bring deep healing to people who are troubled by traumas from their past or apprehension of the future.
E. Probably the majority of Christian mental health counselors are unsure of how to answer that question because they haven’t had an opportunity to study it.
F. Today I'd like to discuss several important aspects of this topic. You may or may not agree with all of the suggestions I make or all of the conclusions I come to. What I hope this will be will be a place for us to compare ideas, to ask searching questions of each other, and hopefully to come away from this time together with a clearer idea of what healing of memories is and whether or not we want to use it in the particular ministry to which God has called us.
G. I hope that, even if you disagree with me on a point from time to time, that you’ll keep an open mind throughout today, and then ask the Lord how he would have you use this, or modify parts of it, so that you could use portions of this method in your counseling ministry.
H. The questions we'll focus on tonight are:
1. What is healing of memories?
2. Why do we need this method of counseling?
3. What are some of the various kinds of healing of memory experiences people have?
4. What are some of the variations in method found among those who use healing of memories in counseling?
5. What are the active ingredients in inner healing?
a. Natural (psychological) elements
b. Supernatural elements (Can arguments be given to show that God really works through this method, or can all the effects be explained on the basis of natural psychological processes alone?)
6. What are some criticisms of or concerns about the inner healing movement, and some possible answers to those criticisms or concerns?
7. If you decide you want to try it, what are some practical guidelines for use of healing of memories?
8. Hopefully we’ll have time for questions, comments and personal integration by students
9. Annotated Bibliography if you should wish to read further
I. Procedural Suggestion
1. As we go along, feel free to ask clarification questions if something is not clear. If it is unclear to you it is probably unclear to others as well. So feel free to ask clarification questions at any time.
2. If you have discussion questions (i.e., question about something that hasn’t been discussed yet) or if you would like to add comments of your own, please jot these in the margin of your notes and hold them until the discussion times we will have at the end of each hour. I think if we use that distinction we will be able to get over maximum material and hopefully also get to most, if not all, of the most important discussion questions.
II. WHY DO WE NEED HEALING OF MEMORIES?
A. David Seamands, in his book Healing for Damaged Emotions, gave his own thoughtful answer to this question. He said that in his own pastoral experience he saw that there was a group of people to whom he was failing to minister.
B. These Christians often read their Bibles and prayed daily. They attended church services regularly. They were involved in Sunday School teaching or other ministries. They memorized Scripture, and may even have fasted from time to time.
C. Yet they had problems that weren't being resolved by their involvement in all these good activities.
D. This group of people were those who carried with them significant scars because of traumas that happened in their past. Sometimes the trauma was a rape or physical abuse, or a terrifying event. Sometimes it was an extended series of events, such as lack of love or affirmation by parents, or psychological abuse, or abandonment. The impact of that event or series of events was so significant that it carried through to the present day. It also prevented the person from being able to utilize the means of grace that the church offered to bring healing and wholeness to their lives.
E. From this pastoral experience David Seamands began his own exploration of inner healing, and his highly respected books Healing for Damaged Emotions and Healing of Memories are the result.
F. Let's talk for a few moments about the theory behind what we're attempting to do in inner healing.
G. For at least the last century, there has been a growing acceptance that events that have happened to us in the past continue to affect us in the present.
H. The neurologist Dr. Wilder Penfield found that memories of the past are stored in our brain and continue to reside there along with the feelings and other sensations that we had when we experienced an event. Dr. Penfield found that these memories could be activated when a small amount of electrical current was passed through the brain cells that store that particular memory.
I. We now know that not all memories are stored in the brain--some less significant memories only remain in short-term memory and are never biochemically encoded into long-term memory.
J. We also now know that memories are not an exact replica of what happened, but rather are a memory of that individual’s perception of what happened. We also know that early memories can be contaminated by events that have happened since that time.
K. Nevertheless, despite these caveats, there is general agreement that a child’s perception of psychologically traumatic events is often recorded in long-term memory, and may continue to affect them for years afterward.
L. If those events happened very early in our childhood, we may have no conscious recollection of those memories; they are stored below the level of conscious awareness.
M. Similarly, sometimes events happen to us that are too painful or frightening for the person to deal with. In that case ego defense mechanisms repress the frightening memories into our unconscious. In some cases there was a single very traumatic incident that was repressed. In other cases there were a series of troubling incidents that happened in one form or another over a period of time (e.g. a parent who showed favoritism to another sibling, or a parent who was constantly criticizing a child).
N. These repressed, painful memories often cause us to develop what Adlerians call convictions.
O. Cognitive behaviorists now call these convictions schemas or core beliefs. These convictions or schemas include beliefs about the world which may be unconscious or conscious, which influence how we perceive ourselves, others, how we interpret events and the behavior of others, our expectancies and expectations, and our beliefs about how we can best meet our needs. These convictions or schemas continue to influence our feelings and behavior years after they were formed, and oftentimes long after the relationship that caused them has changed or no longer exists.
P. These convictions or schemas often cause us to behave in unhealthy ways towards those around us: we may have trouble trusting others, we may have anxiety about letting others get close to us, we may have trouble expressing frustrations in healthy ways.
Q. Unhealthy convictions or maladaptive schema are usually developed because of pain. One goal of the behavior that results from such schema is to prevent ourselves from experiencing that pain again. We generally attempt to do that by controlling others, either through active control--aggressiveness, assertiveness, bossiness, overinvolvement in activities, etc. or through passive means--dependency, fear, passive-aggressiveness, etc.
R. The common denominator is that hurt people attempt to control others in order to prevent retraumatization, but such attempts to control often carries with it a price tag--it prevents healthy, authentic relationships.
S. Usually in counseling we work from the "top down", starting with the conscious mind and helping the person develop new ways of thinking and behaving. However, sometimes it seems that people are unable to change their programming by working from the "top down". The repressed memories, convictions, or maladaptive schema are so powerful that they overcome the person's ability to change their conscious thoughts or feelings. They may say, "I agree with what you're saying, but I just can't get my mind to think that way".
T. This is a time when healing of memories may be helpful. Healing of memories allows a person to go back to the traumatic event or events, identify the pain that caused that powerful conviction to become lodged in their unconscious mind, and then let the healing grace of Christ begin to replace that conviction or maladaptive schema with a new, health-giving one.
U. Therefore healing of memories is important, not only because it can rid us of some of the frightening or angry memories we carry around within us, but because it also provides the means to begin to change the convictions or maladaptive schema upon which some of our incorrect and unhealthy present behavior is built on.
V. Once the unhealthy UCS conviction has been replaced, then the person is often able to make use of the normal means of growth that work from the top down, such as prayer, Bible reading, involvement in church activities, cognitive self-talk, and behavioral change techniques in a much more beneficial way.
III. VARIOUS WAYS OF DEALING WITH TRAUMA FROM THE PAST: There are a number of ways that people and therapists have developed to try to deal with painful or traumatic events in the past:
A. Denial:
1. This can often be seen in one of three ways. Some people deny the effects of past traumas by refusing to think about them. A second way is to assert that the past does not significantly affect the present. A third way is to assert that one has experienced no significant traumas.
2. This approach may work for some people who have a very strong ability to suppress unpleasant things out of their awareness, or who have had few if any severely traumatic events happen to them.
3. However, it does not work for everyone, especially for those who have experienced several traumatic incidents in their lives. And even for those who claim to be able to deal with all of their past hurts in this way, those around them often detect areas of rigidity and insensitivity in them that likely are a result of repressed events. Especially in intimate relationships--relationships with spouse, children, close friends--these unresolved issues are likely to manifest themselves and cause problems.
For those who turn to secular therapy for help in dealing with past traumas there are at least six kinds of approaches that have been used:
B. Abreaction or catharsis: This is a method, originally popularized by Freud, of re-experiencing the traumatic event in one's mind, and allowing the repressed emotions, whether they be fear or anger or whatever, to come forth in the presence of a reassuring and accepting therapist. Freud eventually abandoned the idea that ventilation or catharsis by itself would bring healing, but primal therapy continues today to make use of this approach. The idea is that the ventilation of the emotionally-charged feelings in a caring environment will bring healing.
C. Psychodrama, Gestalt therapy: These methods attempt to have the client re-experience the difficult situation, but then with the help of the therapist work through the place where they feel stuck. Rather than having an emotional catharsis be the primary focus of healing, these approaches would help the client gain a sense of mastery over the situation rather than feel trapped by it by responding in a different way than he or she originally did.
D. Systematic desensitization: Systematic desensitization helps a person learn to relax, then gradually imagine scenes that evoke little discomfort while remaining relaxed. Gradually more and more anxiety-producing scenes are imagined while remaining relaxed, until the person can imagine even the most anxiety-producing scene and still remain comfortable.
E. In vivo desensitization: In vivo desensitization does not require the emphasis on relaxation instructions. With the help of a therapist, clients construct a hierarchy of scenes about which they feel fearful. They then gradually work their way up the hierarchy, doing the things in real life rather than in imagination.
F. Cognitive therapies: These approaches try to change one's perception of an event by changing the way one views that situation (reframing). For example, if a person had viewed a certain action by their parent as rejection (and therefore traumatic), and after discussion were to come to the conclusion that the parent was not intending to reject them but was doing the best they knew how to take care of the family, this new perception could take away much of the trauma the person had associated with that memory.
G. Combining graduated ventilation experiences and cognitive therapy:
1. One of the more common approaches to treating PTSD, which is one of the common residual effects of psychological trauma, is a combination of graduated ventilation (or catharsis) experiences and cognitive therapy (now called Cognitive Processing Therapy).
2. For example, a sexual assault victims may be encouraged to tell their story, when they feel ready, initially in a brief format, and then gradually in more depth. Each time they are encouraged to get in touch with and process more of the thoughts and feelings that are associated with their trauma. With each repeated ventilation and processing, if done with a trained counselor, more of the traumatic affect can be drained away (i.e., desensitization). Often healthy core beliefs have been disrupted by the traumatic event, so by cognitively processing what has occurred, the therapist attempts to help the client replace unhealthy beliefs with more healthy ones (this is the cognitive processing part of CPT).
H. Inner healing or healing of memories
1. Starting in the 1950s a new approach to dealing with traumatic memories was developed by a small and relatively unknown group of Christians. During the 60s this method became somewhat better known, and during the 70s and 80s there has been continued interest in this approach. This method is known as healing of memories.
2. In healing of memories some of the elements that produce healing through secular methods are evident. However, in the secular therapies the healing agent is believed to be one of the following:
a. either the counselor,
b. the client themselves,
c. the relationship between the counselor and client, or
d. the relaxation techniques and guided imagery the counselor uses.
3. There is no need for any supernatural involvement.
4. In healing of memories the belief is that the agent of healing is the Lord himself, or the new perspective He brings to the situation.
IV. Definition: Healing of memories: a therapeutic method in which Jesus is invited to enter a previously-painful or traumatic memory and bring healing as He wills.
A. In some cases the memory may have painful because of what did happen--abuse, active rejection, rape, abortion.
B. In other cases the memory may be painful because of something the person wanted to have happen which did not happen, e.g. wanting to be held, comforted, praised, loved, etc.
C. In most cases Jesus actively does something within the memory the person has which changes their memory experience of that event.
D. Description of the Usual practice: (four steps)
1. Counselor or pastor has the person relax.
2. Then they're asked to remember the events of the traumatic event, i.e. their thoughts about the experience.
3. Next they're asked to remember the feelings they have related to that experience, and
4. They're asked to allow the Lord to come into that experience and minister to them as He wills.
E. Terminology: Inner healing versus healing of memories:
1. Usually these words are used as synonyms. However, sometimes they are used to refer to different concepts.
2. Inner healing can be used as a general term that refers to all the different ways that we receive spiritual and psychological healing. This could include the healing we receive by being loved and accepted by other Christians, through understanding more of God's love and grace toward us, through worship, Bible study, prayer, personal therapy, etc. We receive healing of our inner person through all of these ways.
3. Healing of memories could be considered as one specific method by which we receive inner healing, which occurs when we receive healing of the effects of traumatic memories.
4. Some may go through their entire Christian life receiving substantial inner healing without ever participating in a healing of memories experience. Healing of memories is one of the ways but by far not the only way that people receive inner healing.
5. However, although this technical distinction could be made, in everyday usage the words are almost always used as synonyms, so therefore I will continue to use them in the customary ways.
V. SEVEN KINDS OF HEALING OF MEMORIES EXPERIENCES: John Sterner, in an article entitled Inner Healing: Toward an Integration, lists six ways in which healing of memories can be used.
A. First type: Historical (or whole life): the leader takes a person through the various stages of their life, working to bring healing for events that occurred at each stage. Often a two-to-five-day process.
B. Second type: Incident-focused: either the counselor or the person seeking healing chooses an event that remains in their memory as a very traumatic one and focuses on bring healing for that event (this is probably the most common way that healing of memories is used). Give examples (these stories and the ones in the following categories of healing of memories will be told in the seminar or class session).
C. Third type: Emotional: Another type of healing of memories occurs when God changes the emotions a person feels by bringing a new perspective to the situation.
1. Emotional inner healing focuses on the emotions connected with a memory, in order to clarify or work through them.
2. Sometimes people have never been able to resolve traumatic events because they’ve never been fully and accurately perceiving the emotions they have associated with the event.
3. At other times emotional inner healing is needed because the interpretation a person is making of an event causes unhealthy emotional results. Give illustration.
D. Fourth type of inner healing: Symbolic:
1. From a theoretical perspective a person’s inner beliefs about themselves and their relationship to the world can often be captured in a metaphor or symbol.
2. Symbols or metaphors are often related to the schema (core beliefs) we hold about ourselves.
3. For example, the person who believes the safest thing for him to do when situations become difficult is to run away may find himself repeating this pattern over and over, even when other kinds of responses might be healthier.
4. It often takes long term counseling to change a person’s basic convictions about himself through normal verbal therapies because these metaphors and the schemas that produce them lie at such a deep level of personality. However, often inner healing can change these metaphors in a single session, sometimes producing immediate changes as well as initiating more long-term changes that may continue to produce growth for several weeks or months to come. Give example.
E. Non-directive: allows the Holy Spirit to direct the person's attention to something that needs to be attended to, e.g. "Just close your eyes, relax for a few moments, and see what the Holy Spirit shows you."
1. Occasionally a person will come to a counseling session and not be aware of anything that they need or want to work on. In a situation like this, Sterner recommends that the counselor allow the Holy Spirit to direct the person's attention to something that needs to be attended to. A sample non-directive statement might be, "Just close your eyes, relax for a few moments, and see what the Holy Spirit shows you."
2. In a situation like this, the counselor should also remain alert to possible directions that the Holy Spirit might give him or her. Give example.
F. Semi-nondirective: example: When a person is having difficulty letting go of some powerful emotion (such as anger or resentment), the counselor asks him to share those feelings directly with the Lord.
1. "Instead of talking to me about that, Jim, why don't you close your eyes and talk to Jesus about it?"
2. Discuss the benefit of this instead of telling the client they should let go of those emotions.
G. Addition to Sterner's typology: Healing of a present impasse: having the client invite Jesus to give them understanding and direction regarding a present impasse or feared future event.
1. The person may feel unable to let go of some feeling or emotional response that does not seem to have anything to do with the past. The present response blocks them from experiencing victory in their Christian life.
2. The person may have some unrealistic fear of something in the future. They realize the fear is unrealistic, and they've tried to talk themselves out of it, yet they find themselves unable to shake it.
3. Many of the same methods that are used in healing of memories can be applied to present and future problems as well, so that a discussion of one can be applied to the other group as well. Give example.
VI. Experiential Exercise and Followup Discussion
A. Beforehand do two things
1. Have the client identify a place where he or she feels very secure and safe. This can be a place from their childhood or the past, or a place in their present life where they feel very safe, where they can relax deeply.
2. Have them pray about and ask the Lord to help them identify a situation from the past where they felt very afraid, or hurt, or where they were abused by someone.
3. If God does not bring anything from the past to their mind, pray about the possibility of something with which they are struggling in the present.
B. When teaching this method in a class setting tell the class members that whether or not they take part in this inner healing experience is totally voluntary. If they prefer not to take part they can simply close their eyes and listen. They need not be any more involved in this experience than they choose to be. (Obviously when doing this with a client they would be wanting to experience the healing experience rather than simply listening.)
C. Lay aside your pens and books. Make yourself as comfortable as you can in your chair.
D. Close your eyes. Take three very deep breaths. As you breathe out, let some of the tension in your body flow out.
E. Let other sounds fade into the background. Only be aware of the sound of my voice and your own inner experience.
F. Focus your awareness on your feet. Become aware of the various sensations in your feet . . . . The textures they pick up . . . Enjoy each of those sensations. If you become aware of any tensions in your feet, allow those tensions to relax away . . .
G. [Go through rest of body from feet to head the same way.]
H. Now while you are in that very relaxed state, go in your imagination to that place where you feel very safe and secure . . . .
I. Become aware of the sights around you in that place . . . . Become aware of the sounds . . . . Become aware of the fragrances you smell . . . Become aware of the textures of things you can touch . . . .
J. Enjoy each of those sensations, and as you enjoy them, allow your state of relaxation, your sense of peace, to deepen even further. . . .
K. Now, while staying in that safe place, would you remember the situation for which you desire some healing. Remember how old you were . . . . Remember the people who were involved. . . Remember what happened . . . . Remember the feelings you experienced. . . .
L. Now would you invite the Lord Jesus to come to you. As you see him, become aware of the love and acceptance in his face as his eyes meet yours. . . . Become aware of the gentle sound of his voice as he speaks your name . . . . Sense his deep compassion as his heart reaches out to your . . .
M. Spend the next few moments allowing Him to minister to you as He wills. Ask Him any questions you would like.
N. When you finish talking to him, continue to enjoy His presence until we close in prayer together in a few moments.
O. [Quiet time. Pray for God’s healing, and that He would bar any forces, natural or supernatural, from interfering in the healing process.]
P. Close in prayer that God would seal any healing that He has done, so that Satan could not steal it away. Pray that those who have experienced the Lord’s presence would continue to experience changes as a result of that healing in the days and weeks ahead.
Q. End the prayer. Invite people to open their eyes and come back to the present gradually.
R. In a class setting where you are teaching others to do inner healing, invite those who wish to share their experience with the class to do so. If you are working with an individual client, ask if they would like to share what the Lord did or said (they usually will). In a class setting perhaps begin by sharing one of your own inner healing experiences.
VII. VARIATIONS AMONG THE APPROACHES TO HEALING OF MEMORIES.
A. There is no one standard way to do healing of memories, but rather a wide variety of ways. Each of these ways seems to be used of God to bring healing to people.
B. The next section will acquaint you with some of the diversity you will find if you read the books by David Seamands, Dennis and Matthew Linn, Rita Bennett, Francis MacNutt, Betty Tappscott, Michael Scanlon, Ruth Carter Stapleton, Leanne Payne and Ed Smith. Each of these people have, I believe, some very important insights to offer us. Each has things with which we will occasionally disagree.
C. This diversity can actually be good. Rather than being frustrated because there isn't one right way to do inner healing, we can be thankful because it seems that God uses a variety of ways. This allows us to choose the particular method or combination of methods that best fits our particular personality and style of ministry. Let's look at some of that diversity now:
D. Length of the inner healing session
1. Healing for a specific incident: Often can be accomplished within a single session. Probably the most common way that inner healing is done in counseling.
2. Healing for a series of incidents: Often abuse, as in the form of favoritism, constant criticism, rejection, came repeatedly over a long period of time. David Seamands will often have a person identify a series of situations all centered around the same theme by reading books that spur a person's memory, by keeping a journal, and through discussions with the counselor. After all or many of these events have surfaced, then he will have a two-hour prayer session with the counselee to deal with several of them altogether.
3. Whole life seminars: these are extended workshops that may last anywhere from one day to an entire week. During this time a person's entire life is covered, and prayer made for events that occurred during each time period.
E. Whether prayer, prayer plus biblical imagery, or prayer plus biblical imagery plus other psychological methods are used in the inner healing process.
1. Some counselors use prayer almost totally as the means of inner healing.
2. For example, David Seamands will have the person begin talking with the Lord in prayer about the events that need healing, with no relaxation exercises or guided imagery at the beginning. Then he will have the person listen to what the Lord wants to say back to them. He may occasionally ask the person a question or ask them to talk with the Lord about a specific aspect of the event. The primary emphasis is on a prayer dialogue between the person and the Lord.
3. Others will begin in prayer, then introduce some Biblical imagery about the Lord which is related to the event needing to be healed. The imagery as well as the dialogue that happens between the person and the Lord is part of the healing process (e.g., Christ as a loving Shepherd).
4. Other counselors add a third element to the above two--one or more psychological methods. One of the most common consists of relaxing each part of the body before going into the prayer and imagery experience.
5. The relaxation is not viewed as part of the inner healing itself. Rather, the relaxation allows the person to put other things aside mentally, center or focus on the prayer and imagery experience. This is particularly helpful when the person has difficulty focusing on visualizing the Lord or is very afraid of the incidents that caused the trauma. Without relaxation exercises some people will say that they couldn't imagine the Lord being there.
F. Is conversion and total commitment to the Lord necessary before inner healing can be effective?
1. Some people believe that inner healing should never be attempted unless the person has a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ and is fully committed to living out the Christian life.
2. Probably the majority of those who have been involved in the inner healing movement for some time are not so dogmatic on this point.
3. It seems that frequently when a nominal believer experiences God's love in a very powerful way, this transforms them into a much more committed believer in a short period of time.
4. Probably none of us would encourage the use of inner healing for someone who was only dabbling in religion, seeing what they could find in this religion and in the next. However, for the earnest seeker, inner healing may be a very appropriate way for him to find that Christianity has something very unique and powerful to offer them.
5. But I don’t think we should limit God. I recently did inner healing in a group setting which included one person who called themselves an atheist and another who identified as a Buddhist, and both stated that they had significant encounters with God.
G. To what extent is deliverance used in conjunction with inner healing?
1. Some groups believe that people are frequently oppressed by demonic forces, and use deliverance regularly before prayers for inner healing. They may also use deliverance if they seem to strike an impasse in dealing with an issue using inner healing.
2. Others are more reluctant to look to demonic oppression or possession whenever an impasse is encountered. While not denying that Satan exists and that he or his demons can oppress people, these folks would often look at other possibilities (usually psychological processes such as fear, etc.) that might explain the impasse before immediately moving to a deliverance ministry.
H. To what extent are the events that occur within the inner healing experience structured by the counselor?
1. Some of those in the charismatic inner healing movement seem to be gifted with what charismatics call a "word of knowledge"--God seems to give them images of what memories need to be healed in a person's life, and of exactly how the Lord wants to bring healing for those memories. Two example are Betty Tapscott and Ruth Carter Stapleton, both charismatic Southern Baptists.
2. The things that happen in their inner healing ministries seem nothing less than phenomenal. People experience very rapid yet gentle healing of memories that were deeply repressed and which they never even knew about. Later relatives or friends often confirm the validity of the memory that was revealed to Mrs. Stapleton or Mrs. Tapscott.
3. Probably most of those who are involved in inner healing do not receive a "word of knowledge" regularly in their inner healing work, and so have to depend on God bringing those memories to the mind of the counselee which need to be healed. It also means that often we need to be content to set up the scene where the Lord comes in to minister to the person, and then pray quietly while the Lord ministers to the person within their own mind.
I. To what extent is the healing of a memory considered a one-time occurrence versus a process that sometimes has to be repeated before it is fully complete?
1. Many think of healing of memories as a one-time occurrence. You pray for inner healing for an event, and it should be resolved completely.
2. Dennis and Matthew Linn, among others, have suggested that even as physical healing is a process rather than a one-time occurrence, so spiritual healing is often also a process. People will let go of some of the hurt or anger or fear in one healing session, then may be able to let go of some more of it in a later session, and it may be several sessions before the event is totally healed.
3. They, along with Francis MacNutt, have spoken of "soaking prayer," that is, soaking a need in prayer repeatedly until the healing is complete.
A last dimension on which there is some diversity is:
J. The extent to which other counseling methods are used afterwards to consolidate the changes that occurred in inner healing.
1. Obviously when a person leaves after a weekend seminar and never sees the seminar leader again, it is hard to have follow-up. Therefore in some books on inner healing there is little emphasis on what steps should be taken after an inner healing experience.
2. However, in many of the books on inner healing this subject is addressed. For example, the woman who was abused by her father as a little girl and learned to be aggressive when men get too close, may receive inner healing for those injuries, but her aggressiveness may have become a habit by this time. In follow-up counseling it will be important to help her learn new ways of thinking about men and responding to them.
3. If our hypothesis is correct, i.e., that inner healing can begin the process of changing a maladaptive schema into something more adaptive in a single encounter, it would seem to make sense that it would be wise to provide support for the person in the coming weeks, as they seek to adjust to the new schema and the changes it is producing in their lives as well as the lives of the significant others around them.
VIII. Six Examples of Actual Healing of Memory Approaches: We've taken a look at the diversity of approaches used in inner healing, but not looked at any of the methods from start to finish. Let's take a brief look at six approaches as they would occur from start to finish:
A. Rita Bennett
1. Rita Bennett's approach to healing of memories (How to Pray for Inner Healing for Yourself and Others), emphasizes prayer therapy, where the main focus is on the person recognizing the feelings that are there, and then giving them to the Lord in prayer.
2. Her approach does not involve having the person try to identify all the elements of the repressed memory beforehand, or having counselors work with the person afterward to develop a new set of attitudes or behaviors as a result of the inner healing experience.
3. She is aiming more at training people to be prayer counselors rather than to do more extended counseling with a person.
B. Dennis and Matthew Linn
1. Dennis and Matthew Linn's approach to healing of memories (Healing Life's Hurts) sees a parallel between the five stages that Kubler-Ross believed many people go through when they realize they are dying--denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance, and the stages we go through when we forgive a wound that we have received from someone else.
2. They would see forgiveness as a process, one that we can either cooperate with and with God's help allow to happen, or one in which we can get stuck if we refuse to allow God's grace to help us through.
3. Inner healing, for them, then involves helping a person get in touch with the pain caused by the incident, then becoming willing to let the Lord help them give that pain to him and help them forgive whoever produced that pain.
4. Cf. Lewis Smedes’ four-step model of forgiveness
a. We hurt
b. We hate
c. We heal (as we seek to develop empathy for the person who harmed us)
d. We reach out the hand of friendship to the person who hurt us.
C. David Seamands
1. David Seamands will usually spend one or two counseling sessions helping a person identify a situation or series of related situations that need healing. He may assign books for the person to read, or have them try to remember the events and keep a journal of the things they remember. The purpose of these activities is to bring to the person's conscious awareness as much of the repressed material as possible so that it can be dealt with in prayer therapy.
2. He then schedules a two-hour prayer session. During this time he has the person talk with the Lord about the memories and feelings that have surfaced. If he believes that the person is still repressing feelings or thoughts that need to be dealt with, he will gently ask questions or make suggestions in order to make the person confront whatever is there. The goal is to help the person get in touch with all that has been repressed, and have the person be willing to give all negative feelings to the Lord for the Lord to transform as He wills.
3. He often uses what Sterner calls a “semi-nondirective approach” at times during these prayer times.
4. He will then schedule follow-up sessions to help the person work towards new thought patterns and behavior patterns that are consistent with the changed attitudes that resulted from the healing of memories.
D. Ruth Carter Stapleton, Betty Tapscott
1. These were two gifted charismatic Southern Baptist women who were active in the healing of memories movement.
2. They often integrated “words of knowledge” in identifying what needed healing as well as how the Lord would heal it.
3. Reading their books gives tremendously-moving examples of God working powerfully in people’s lives.
4. It is true that Ruth Carter Stapleton at times asserted some very simplistic theories of human development and toward the end of her life made some undiscriminating comments about integrating New Age concepts into her theology. However, this was never true of Betty Tapscott, and the fact that a person may be undiscerning in some area of their psychology or theology does not mean that they may not have discovered valid truths in other areas.
E. Leanne Payne
1. Leanne Payne is a Research Fellow at Yale Divinity School, and in some ways may have the most comprehensive theory of how inner healing may be part of the Christian counseling process.
2. She believes that in order to grow up healthily, we all need to feel loved and validated within our families (cf. Glasser, Crabb, Satir, etc.)
3. If we do not feel loved, the person grows up with a deep need to be loved and may be overly-vulnerable to those who would exploit that need in order to accomplish their own goals.
4. If our gifts and strengths are not validated by our parents, we may fail to see our own gifts and strengths and see only deficits. Those positive traits, even though they are there, are not part of our personal identity.
5. According to Payne, in order to be healthy we
a. must be healed of the traumas of our past, and
b. must also accept ourselves as loved, lovable, gifted, and significant.
6. There are at least three barriers to wholeness which inner healing can help us deal with. They include:
a. Failure to forgive others.
b. Failure to receive forgiveness for ourselves,
c. Failure to accept and love ourselves rightly (Broken Image, p. 48).
7. She sees healthy self-love as the ability to experience God’s love and validation of us rightly. This is what can heal us from the self-loathing or ego-centric self-love in which many people live.
8. She has written extensively about how this failure to be loved and validated can lead to rejection of our God-given sexual identity, and thereby can lead to either homosexuality or lesbianism but she wants her work to be understood more broadly, for she says: “To write about the healing of the homosexual is to write about the healing of all men, for every one of us has been stuck in some diseased form of self-love (The Broken Image, p. 55).
9. Her method is to use discussion (the exploratory phase of counseling) to identify where the person has failed to receive love and validation or experienced traumas, and then use inner healing to bring healing to those areas of his or her life.
10. Putting her theory into contemporary cognitive-behavioral language, one might say that failure to receive love and validation (or the experience of traumatic events) causes people to develop maladaptive core beliefs about themselves, others, and their relationship to the world. Inviting Jesus to do an inner healing work is an invitation to let him supernaturally replace those maladaptive schemas (or core beliefs) with healthier ones. The secular counselor (or the Christian counselor who is not using inner healing methods) would attempt to change those core beliefs through natural methods, i.e., Socratic questions, discussion, experiments, etc. In inner healing those core beliefs (if healing of memory advocates are correct), are supernaturally transformed through an experiential encounter with Jesus.
F. Ed Smith: TheoPhostic Prayer Ministry (TPM): He believes the memory becomes unhealthy because (1) Satan plants a damaging lie into the memory or (2) we ourselves do (e.g., you are shameful, you are guilty, you are unacceptable, etc.). TPM consists of re-experiencing the memory, identifying the lie implanted in it, then asking the Lord to replace that lie with his truth. Smith believes that in TPM the important healing comes, not from changing the memory of what happened, but by replacing the lie that is embedded in the memory. Therefore he prefers not to call what he does “healing of memories” even though his method seems to have much in common with traditional healing of memories. Training to do TPM the way that Ed Smith recommends takes several months and so will not be discussed further here, although I do believe there is much of value in his work. A summary and discussion of his methods is the subject of one other handout that may be requested from this author (HVirkler@aol.com).
G. Siang-Yang Tan: The highly respected psychologist, pastor, and professor at Fuller Graduate School of Psychology has described his approach to healing of memories in his article “Use of Prayer and Scripture in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy” published in the Journal of Psychology and Christianity (2007), Vol. 26, No. 2, pp. 101-111. A full description of my approach is given later in this handout. Although the two approaches were developed independently, they show remarkable similarities.
IX. THE ACTIVE INGREDIENTS IN INNER HEALING
A. Natural Elements: What are some of the psychological processes (occurring at the natural level) that seem to be involved in inner healing?
1. Catharsis or abreaction: Re-experiencing the traumatic incident in the presence of a reassuring and accepting person
2. Working through an incident where a person feels stuck (as in psychodrama or Gestalt Therapy),
3. Desensitization: accomplished through pairing a traumatic event with a positive stimulus
4. Reframing: Gaining a new perspective on the situation that formerly produced pain or fear (as in the cognitive therapies).
5. Forgiveness: Fritz Perls said that the most common unclosed gestalt binding someone to the past (i.e., keeping the person from being to experience the present fully) is the failure to forgive one's parents for not being perfect
6. Freeing people to be able to choose again: (related to the above)
7. Healing that comes from experiencing unconditional positive regard (in this case God's)
[Important Note: While these elements are also found in the secular therapies, the way they occur in healing of memories is often different.]
B. Supernatural Elements: Do you believe there are supernatural elements involved in inner healing (i.e., phenomena not explainable in terms of natural elements only)? Why or why not?
Eight reasons why I believe healing of memories is more than using one's own subconscious to bring healing to oneself:
1. The extremely creative therapeutic events seem to be the work of a master therapist.
a. Many of the people who experience inner healing have very average intellectual abilities and very average creativity.
b. The therapeutic transactions that occur between them and the Lord do not seem explainable in terms of them creating the events in their imagination.
c. The therapist does not create them, since he often does not know what transpired until the event is all over and the client tells him.
d. I think the most reasonable explanation is that these powerful therapeutic experiences are designed by the Master Therapist himself.
2. Subjective experience of the client
a. Systematic desensitization: boring (for both therapist and client)
b. Psychodrama: the therapist helped me extricate myself
c. Healing of memories: God did something wonderful for me.
3. Subjective experience of the counselor: almost always these experiences are extremely moving for the counselor as well.
4. Rapidity of change: often something will happen in healing of memories that will cause more change in a person instantly than you would expect to happen in several sessions of regular counseling.
5. Healing of memories often takes a client through an impasse that neither he nor the therapist could work through with rational problem-solving. There is often an element of surprise.
6. Excellence of the therapeutic timing: In regular therapy, the counselor sometimes proposes something the client is not ready to do--the client believes they are unable to do it at that time. In inner healing, whatever the Lord proposes, he also gives the person a supernatural ability to make the change--whether it be to forgive, or to let go of a fear, or whatever.
7. In inner healing the counselor sometimes receives accurate knowledge that he had no way of obtaining through natural means, e.g., "broken heart" incident.
8. Significant change in one's personal relationship to God.
X. CRITICISMS OF HEALING OF MEMORIES
If there is time, let the class identify criticisms they have heard or questions they have about inner healing as a counseling method.
A. Healing of memories is sorcery (i.e., it is using psychological techniques to make people think things are true that are not in fact true).
1. Hunt and McMahon: Sorcery is "any attempt to manipulate reality (internal, external, past, present or future) by various mind-over-matter techniques that run the gamut from alchemy and astrology to positive/possibility thinking." Based on this definition they identify healing of memories as sorcery.
2. Response: In healing of memories the healing result usually comes from one of several things happening, all of which are consistent with Scriptural reality: 3 points
a. The person is able to experience some theological truth as an experiential reality in their life, e.g.
(1) the woman who thought of God as an angry, irritable old man, who as a result of inner healing experienced Him as a gentle, loving Shepherd.
(2) the woman (who probably would have been diagnosed as dependent personality disorder and was terribly afraid to do things on her own) who visualized Jesus being with her as she left the psychiatric hospital and drove across the state to her home alone.
(3) In inner healing a biblical doctrine becomes experientially real. Often this is a doctrine that all orthodox Christians affirm, but which often would stay as a cognitive part of their theological catechism were it not for healing of memories or guided imagery.
b. Healing of memories often brings healing because it enables a person to forgive someone against whom they had a long-standing grudge--as opposed to only denial that there’s a problem.
(1) Sometimes this happens because during the healing of memories Jesus helps the person see the event in a new light, and as a result the hurt and feelings of being taken advantage of dissipate.
(2) Sometimes it happens because when the person senses God's love and forgiveness for them, they no longer desire to carry around unforgiveness towards others.
c. Healing of memories sometimes brings healing because we become aware that God was there even though we thought we were all alone.
(1) Sometimes a great deal of the hurt of an old trauma came because we thought that there was no one that we could share it with, or that there was no one who cared. In healing of memories a person often becomes aware that God was there, and that he wanted to help them bear that hurt.
(2) Song: He was there all the time.
d. Healing of memories, then, is not playing mind-games with ourselves or trying to convince ourselves that something is true that was not really true. Healing of memories involves helping the truths of Scripture to become experientially real for a person.
B. Healing of memories should not be used because there is no biblical support for this method. Several points:
1. There is no Biblical support for many of the things we Christians use in ministry:
a. Use of radio or television or recording of our services for those who cannot be there.
b. Use of sound-amplifying equipment to enhance the worship experience of those who attend our churches.
c. Sunday School, special children's church programs, none of these are mentioned in the Bible. (Sunday Schools were not established until the 1800s.)
d. Would anyone want to argue that we should abolish the use of these ministry aids because they are not found in Scripture?
2. There is no Biblical support for most of the means that we use to help those who are sick in some way:
a. Root canal work or fillings in dentistry.
b. Insulin for diabetes
c. Surgery, radiation therapy, or chemotherapy for those with malignancies.
d. Corrective lenses for those who are nearsighted, farsighted or have astigmatism.
e. Penicillin for children with serious infections.
f. Would anyone want to argue that Christians should not use these means because they are not explicitly mentioned in Scripture?
3. There is no explicit Biblical support for systematic desensitization, in vivo desensitization, psychoanalysis, empty-chair technique, assertiveness training, etc.
4. Seamands excellent words: "The real question is not whether a practice appears in the Bible in the specific form or language we use today. Rather, the question is whether [the practice] is contradictory to or consistent with principles stated in Scripture” (Seamands, 1986, pp.61-62.).
5. Visualizing God, using images of his power and love to encourage and strengthen believers is very Biblical, in contrast to Hunt and McMahon’s statements: e.g.
I cried out to God for help;
I cried out to God to hear me.
When I was in distress, I sought the Lord. . . . .
Then I thought. . . . .
I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.
I will meditate on all your works
and consider all your might deeds.
Your ways, O God, are holy.
What god is so great as our God?
You are the God who performs miracles;
you display your power among the peoples.
With your mighty arm you redeemed your people,
the descendants of Jacob and Joseph.
The waters saw you, O God,
the waters saw you and writhed;
the very depths were convulsed.
The clouds poured down water,
the skies resounded with thunder;
your arrows flashed back and forth.
Your thunder was heard in the whirlwind,
your lightning lit up the world;
the earth trembled and quaked.
Your path led through the sea,
your way through the mighty waters,
though your footprints were not seen.
You led your people like a flock
by the hand of Moses and Aaron. (selected verses from Ps. 77).
a. (Clearly the vivid word picture here indicates that the Psalmist was visualizing God in his greatness and his loving-kindness.)
b. Many other Psalms could be given as examples of the Psalmist drawing strength and healing and peace from visualizing images of God's great works and love on behalf of his children (e.g. Psalm 46, Psalm 23).
c. Visualizing in Scripture is not limited to the Psalmist. See each of the following references for other examples of biblical visualizing in faith.
d. John 4:35-38 Do you not say, 'Four months more and then the harvest'? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the reaper draws his wages, even now he harvests the crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying 'One sows and another reaps' is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor." [Jesus was telling his hearers to visualize the spiritual harvest that was around them in the people who were willing to come to him.]
e. Acts 2:25-26 David said about him: "'I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. 26Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live in hope. [Again, David drew hope from visualizing the presence of the Lord with him.]
f. II Corinthians 4:18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
g. Ephesians 1:18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,
h. Hebrews 2:9, 11:13, 11:27, and 12:2
(1) Heb 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
(2) Heb 11:13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth.
(3) Heb 11:27 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible.
(4) Heb 12:2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
C. Healing of memories is sometimes promoted as a cure-all. Response: Most thoughtful people involved in healing of memories regard it as a set of methods that are helpful in dealing with negative emotions such as anxiety and unforgiveness associated with past events. It is not a cure-all, but one method among others.
D. Examination of emotionally-traumatic events by unskilled persons is potentially dangerous
1. There seem to be no more reported psychiatric casualties from healing of memories than from any other psychiatric technique. E.g. How many of you know someone who seems to have been damaged by psychiatric hospitalization? How many of you know someone who has been hurt by healing of memories?
2. Usually if someone is not skilled enough to use healing of memories the worst that will happen is that the person will not be able to visualize the memory, so nothing will happen.
3. Healing of memory proponents claim that Jesus is the therapist in inner healing anyway. They simply set the stage that allows Him to do His healing work.
4. The above argument is only valid against the use of healing of memories by unskilled or insensitive persons. Any good method or procedure in medicine or dentistry or counseling is dangerous if used by unskilled or insensitive people. It is not a valid argument against the use of healing of memories by trained, sensitive persons.
E. You need to be charismatic in order to use healing of memories
1. It is true that several of the people who were pioneers in developing healing of memory methods were charismatic.
2. However, it is also true that some of the finest work in healing of memories and some of the finest books on healing of memories have been by non-charismatics (e.g. David Seamands)
3. Healing of memories is a method that can be used by charismatics and non-charismatics alike, just as prayer, Bible reading, regular participation in the activities of the church are all means of spiritual growth that can be used by charismatics and non-charismatics alike.
F. Healing of memories might open the door to Satan. Two Scriptures:
1. Ask and it will be given to you: seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! (Mt. 7: 7-11)
2. Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him. (Lu. 11:11-13)
3. In healing of memories we are asking in prayer for the Holy Spirit to come into a person's memory of an event and reveal how Jesus would change that memory. I believe we have God's promise here in these Scriptures that if we ask for the Holy Spirit to come into a situation, God will not send nor will he allow Satan to come in instead.
G. Other Scriptures that Support the Concept that God Desires Inner Healing for His Children
1. Introduction
a. In this compilation of verses, inner healing is being used in the broad sense of healing of the inner person (i.e., psychological healing, or in biblical terms, healing of the soul). In contrast to secular psychology, which rarely talks about dealing with personal sin as an element in psychological healing, the majority of verses that talk about psychotherapy (soul healing) in the Bible talk about the healing that comes with confession and repentance from sin.
b. However, there are also many verses that talk about the fact that God also brings healing for those who are brokenhearted, who have been broken by the sins of others, the weight of poverty or adversity, etc. (i.e., the kinds of healing that Christian counselors often try to foster today). In several of these Old Testament passages the situation that was causing broken hearts was the Exile. Even though that specific situation may differ from the situations of individual believers today, the common theme is that God desires to heal the broken hearts of his children, whether their situations are caused by our personal sin, the sinfulness of others, the adversities of human life, or some combination of all of the above.
c. We have been influenced by a model of human beings that came out of secular Greek philosophy, one which divided human beings into two or three parts. The three part division believed that humans were composed of three separable substances--body, soul (or personality), and spirit. According to this model it would be theoretically possible for a person to be psychologically ill and spiritually whole, or psychologically well and spiritually sick. However, this model was not the mindset of the biblical writers. For them, who we are as psychological beings and who we are as spiritual beings is inescapably interwoven. Thus when the Bible talks about healing of the inner person, it is talking about an integrated psychological/spiritual healing.
2. Old Testament Passages[1]
a. Exod 15:26 He said, "If you listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, who heals you" [see fuller discussion of Jehovah Rapha, the God who heals, in the following section].
b. Ps 23:1-3 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
c. Ps 34:18 The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
d. Ps 41:1-4 Blessed is he who has regard for the weak; the LORD delivers him in times of trouble. 2The LORD will protect him and preserve his life; he will bless him in the land and not surrender him to the desire of his foes. 3The LORD will sustain him on his sickbed and restore him from his bed of illness. 4 I said, "O LORD, have mercy on me; heal me, for I have sinned against you."
e. Ps 103:1-6 Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. 2Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits--3who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, 4who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, 5who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. 6The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.
f. Ps 119:27-28 Let me understand the teaching of your precepts; then I will meditate on your wonders. 28My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word.
g. Ps 147:2-3 The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the exiles of Israel. 3He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.
h. Isa 11:1-4 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. 2The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him-- the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD--3 and he will delight in the fear of the LORD. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; 4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.
i. Isa 40:29-31 He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. 30Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; 31but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
j. Isa 42:1-4 "Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations. 2He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. 3A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; 4he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his law the islands will put their hope."
k. Isa 53:4-6 Surely he [Jesus] took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. 5But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. 6We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
l. Isa 61:1-4 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, 2to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3and provide for those who grieve in Zion-- to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor. 4They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.
m. Jer 17:13-14 O LORD, the hope of Israel, all who forsake you will be put to shame. Those who turn away from you will be written in the dust because they have forsaken the LORD, the spring of living water. 14Heal me, O LORD, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise.
n. Jer 31:23-25 This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: "When I bring them back from captivity, the people in the land of Judah and in its towns will once again use these words: 'The LORD bless you, O righteous dwelling, O sacred mountain.' 24People will live together in Judah and all its towns-- farmers and those who move about with their flocks. 25 I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint."
3. A Brief Excursus on the Hebrew Word Rapha
a. rapha: (from Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, 1980, Chicago: Moody) “to heal, make healthful.” This word occurs over 60 times in the OT.
b. Rapha has a number of denotations. It can refer to (a) repairing an altar (1 Ki. 18:30), or to making unfit water fit for drinking or for life (2 Ki. 2:21, Jer. 19:11), and (c) healing and forgiveness of Gentile nations (Isaiah 19:22, 57:18).
c. When referring to humans it can refer to (a) physical healing (the most common usage, e.g., Gen. 20:7), (b) healing from difficulties that had come because of one’s sin (2 Chron. 7:14), (c) healing from God’s judgments that had come because of sin (Job 5:18), (d) healing from the estrangement that our sin caused between God and ourselves (Isaiah 53:5-6), (e) physically saving one from the hands of enemies (Ps. 30:2), (f) healing of physical wounds received in battle (2 Ki 9:15), and (g) healing from fear for those who have been saved from their enemies (Ps 147:3). The underlying theme of the word rapha in reference to God and human beings is that God desires to heal us physically, psychologically, and spiritually.
4. New Testament Passages
a. Matt 11:28-30 [Jesus speaking] "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
b. Matt 12:9-21 Going on from that place, [Jesus] went into their synagogue, 10and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, they asked him, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?" 11He said to them, "If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? 12How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath." 13Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. 14But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus. 15Aware of this, Jesus withdrew from that place. Many followed him, and he healed all their sick, 16warning them not to tell who he was. 17This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: 18"Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations. 19He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his voice in the streets. 20A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory. 21In his name the nations will put their hope."
c. Luke 4:14-22 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. 15He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. 16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. 17The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: 18"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, 19to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." 20Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, 21and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." 22 All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips.
d. John 21:15-17, 19b [Historical setting: This event follows Peter’s three-fold denial of Christ, and Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection. This was one of Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances to his disciples.] When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?" "Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my lambs." 16Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me?" He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep." 17The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my sheep” . . . . 19 . . . . Then he said to him, "Follow me!" [Note: Peter had denied Jesus three times. Jesus lovingly give Peter an opportunity to reaffirm his commitment three times. With each commitment Jesus reaffirms that He wants Peter to re-enter his place of service and ministry in the kingdom.
e. Romans 5:3-5 We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
f. Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. [“Good” refers in this context to becoming more and more like Christ in our personality.]
g. 1 Pet 2:21-25 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 22"He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth." 23When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 24He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. 25For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
h. 3 Jn 1:2 Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.
5. The Significance of the Narrative Portions of Scripture for the Issue of Inner Healing
a. In addition to these (primarily doctrinal) passages, there is another important reason for believing that God wants to heal human beings psychologically. These are the hundreds of stories found throughout the entire Bible. The stories of Adam and Eve, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, David, Peter, Paul, the rest of the apostles, etc. all teach us one thing--that God is working in our lives to bring us to wholeness--if only we will let him.
b. Max Lucado (1993), in He Still Moves Stones, (Dallas: Word) says this powerfully:
Why did God leave us one tale after another of wounded lives being restored? So we could be grateful for the past? So we could look back with amazement at what Jesus did?
No. No. No. A thousand times no. The purpose of these stories is not to tell us what Jesus did. Their purpose is to tell us what Jesus does.
“Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us,” Paul penned. “The Scriptures give us patience and encouragement so that we can have hope” (Rom. 15:4).
These are not just Sunday school stories. Not romantic fables. Not somewhere-over-the-rainbow illusions. They are historic moments in which a real God met real pain so we could answer the question, “Where is God when I hurt?”
He’s not doing it just for them. He is doing it for me. He’s doing it for you (p. 200).
H. There are no Type 1 studies to show that healing of memories is effective
1. That is true. Healing of memories, as with most of the psychotherapies developed in the 1940s through 1980s, was developed before we even knew the term “Type 1 studies” or empirically-validated therapies.
2. All these therapies were used and adopted by therapists based on their sense of whether or not they seemed to help people get better, the same way that most medicines up until recently were developed and adopted. Pragmatism (using what worked) was the primary criteria for use.
3. The vast majority of therapy techniques continue to be used without support from Type 1 studies, including most psychodynamic techniques, Adlerian techniques, Jungian techniques, Gestalt therapy techniques, techniques from most of the humanistic psychologists, techniques from the systemic therapies, and techniques from the postmodern therapies. Psychotherapeutic techniques that don’t have Type 1 studies to validate their efficacy are used by the vast majority of therapists today. Therapists continue to use them because they know that they work.
4. The same is true for healing of memories. Therapists who use healing of memories are often convinced that God does some amazing healing when they use this method at the appropriate times.
5. Certainly it would be useful to have Type 1 studies done on healing of memories. The reality is that psychotherapy research is expensive and complicated, and usually can only be done by psychology professors in doctoral programs who know how to get research grants funded and who have doctoral students to help them carry out such research. I personally would welcome such research. Ed Smith is conducting research on Theophostic Prayer Ministry (a related inner healing method), and is having some promising results. However, his studies are probably in the category of Type 3 studies, but they represent movement in the effort to show that this kind of approach does bring significant healing to people.
XI. Suggested Guidelines for Use with Healing of Memories
A. As mentioned earlier, there are many ways to do healing of memories. Below is one suggested method for doing so, and one that has significant similarities to the one developed by Siang-Yang Tan mentioned earlier.
B. Suggested times when healing of memories may be useful in counseling: (six areas)
1. When clients have vivid recurring traumatic memories (e.g., PTSD),
2. When clients have recurring negative thoughts about their own worth, ability, acceptability, or lovableness,
3. When clients have a fear or phobia that seems to come from a specific historical situation,
4. When clients have resentment or bitterness in their life,
5. When clients have difficulty experiencing God as the loving heavenly father of Scripture, or have difficulty experiencing themselves as his beloved children (they may be able to intellectually agree that God is a loving heavenly father, but they cannot experience this in their own personal life), or
6. When clients have developed unhealthy lifestyles (in the Adlerian sense) because they have not experienced healthy love or validation.
C. If the person is dealing with a fear-producing memory, usually you will not experience any resistance from them about helping them be free of that memory.
D. If the person is dealing with anger or resentment, you may experience some resistance to letting go of his anger. Help the person recognize that hate is a relationship, an imprisoning one. Help him see, preferably through questioning that helps him recognize these facts himself, that when he continues to resent someone he is not free to enjoy the present (psychologically) or to experience the fullness of God's grace (spiritually). Try to help him move to a point where he is willing to ask for God's help in forgiving whoever hurt him.
E. I will separate each step with a blank line to make it easier to read if you are doing one of your first healing of memories. After you have done a few of them you will find the format is fairly easy to do from memory. (For ease of grammatical expression I will use the pronoun “he” below, but the pronoun “she” is equally appropriate.)
F. Ask the person if he would be willing to try an experiment that you think would help him let go of the angry or anxious feelings.
G. Together identify a situation or series of situations for which the person needs healing. Discuss these extensively enough so that you both understand all important dimensions of the situation(s).
H. Ask the counselee whether he usually remembers things visually, auditorily, or kinesthetically (by the internal feelings he experiences). During the inner healing experience describe the imagery primarily in terms of the dimension he imagines most vividly (this comes from the neuro-linguistic programming concept of using the client’s “preferred representational system”).
I. Ask the person to identify a place where he feels very relaxed and comfortable, and to describe that place to you.
J. Let the person take the most relaxing chair in your office. Alert your secretary so that there will be no interruptions during the inner healing time. If there are loud distracting noises outside your office try to stop them before proceeding with the healing of memories experience if possible. Suggestion: Turn off your cellphone (don’t just put it on vibrate mode) and ask your client to do the same.
K. Begin with a prayer that the Lord will come into this experience and bring healing for the memories you have discussed.
L. If you believe that the person could imagine the scene with no “warmup,” go immediately into describing the scene that needs healing. If the counselee has trouble imagining the scene or seems quite anxious, lead the person through some type of relaxation exercise to help him be able to more clearly visualize the scenes and memories for which they need healing.
M. A simple type of relaxation exercise is to have the person focus on each section of his body, starting with his feet. Have him focus on the sensations in that part of his body, take a moment to enjoy those sensations, then if there is any tension in that part of his body, allow that tension to relax away. Then go on through each part of his body until he is thoroughly relaxed.
N. Spending five minutes going through this exercise will help most people become quite relaxed and enables them to focus on their own inner experience more easily. Relaxation does not produce healing but enables the person to let go of external distractions and focus more fully on their experience with the Lord. In most cases I believe you will find this will be a worthwhile investment of time.
O. During the early part of this relaxation sequence you can also suggest that sounds other than your voice will fade into the background, so that they will be able to focus their attention fully on the sound of your voice and their own inner experience.
P. If the counselee seems anxious, you can deepen their relaxation by having them go in their imagination to the very relaxing place they described a few moments before (Step I above). You should describe the sensations they can pick up with each of their five senses when in that special place, and describe the person becoming more and more relaxed, more and more comfortable.
Q. Have the person remember the situation as it happened--what events led up to it, who was there, what happened . . . . .
R. Ask the person to remember the feelings he had during that event, and to re-experience those feelings now.
S. Have the person allow Jesus to come into that scene and be with him through that event.
T. Describe Jesus either visually, auditorily, or kinesthetically depending on which way the counselee says he or she best remembers events.
U. Say something like: “Let Jesus come into that scene and minister to you as he wills. Spend as much time talking to him as you need to, then when you've finished keep your eyes closed but let me know that you're finished.”
V. During the time of quietness you can be praying for the counselee. It is good to pray that God will prevent any ideas or visualizations from Satan, from the client’s own mind, or from any other source from interfering, so that everything the client experiences will be from the Holy Spirit. It is usually best to pray with your eyes open and be attentive to the counselee's non-verbal behavior. If his non-verbal behavior indicates that he is becoming distressed, you can ask: "Would you tell me what is happening?" Then intervene appropriately.
W. After the person says he has finished, close in a prayer of thankfulness for the Lord's caring and ask that whatever process of healing has been started during that time would continue over the coming days and weeks, and that the person might become aware of changes in his feelings, attitudes and behavior in the coming days.
X. After the prayer is ended, ask the person if he would like to share his experience with you. If he does, you can affirm what he learned and the changes the Lord brought about in his understanding.
Y. If the person reached an impasse (either was unable to imagine the Lord or were unable to imagine past a certain point in the guided imagery), make this into a learning experience. Perhaps there is a need for more time spent in the relaxation phase prior to the guided imagery. Perhaps his anxiety about meeting the Lord reveals something about his view of himself and God that needs to be discussed or even approached through guided imagery.
Z. If healing of memories does not work with a person, it almost always will teach you something about how to better prepare a person for healing of memories, or something about that person's comfort in their relationship with the Lord that needs to be addressed. Working through these issues will almost always be therapeutically helpful spiritually and will often pave the way for healing of memories to work in the future.
AA. Remember that healing is often a process rather than a one-time event. At the next session ask the person if he has noticed any changes in himself or in the way he is relating to others as a result of the inner healing.
BB. Sometimes people may benefit from further time with the Lord on the same issue. At other times it will be good to consolidate the changes by having him identify cognitive or behavioral changes that he will be willing to make as a result of the internal work the Lord has done.
CC. If the person made a significant psychological advance in one session of inner healing, make sure to consolidate this through discussion before attempting to make further significant advances through inner healing (e.g. discuss story of rape victim).
DD. This list of suggested steps may seem daunting. Remember the basic steps are very simple:
1. Discuss with the person a memory that needs to be healed.
2. Ask if they would like to try an experiment and invite the Lord to heal it directly.
3. If they say yes, begin with prayer, then ask them to remember the event, invite the Lord into it, and invite him to minister to them as he wills.
4. During this time be in silent prayer, asking the Lord to minister and commanding Satan not to interfere in any way. Watch for any non-verbal behavior that indicate the person is experiencing distress.
5. When the person indicates that they are done, close in prayer.
6. Ask if the person would like to share with you what happened in their encounter with the Lord.
EE. Note: This is only one way of doing inner healing. Authors such as Rita Bennett, Dennis and Matthew Linn, Francis MacNutt, David Seamands, Ruth Carter Stapleton, Betty Tapscott, Leanne Payne, and Ed Smith have developed alternatives methods. You might explore these others (using the bibliography in the next section) to learn more about these other approaches and see if one of them is more compatible with your thinking and counseling style. All of these various authors and approaches have been used to bring significant healing to many people. Ed Smith’s writings on Theophostic Prayer Ministry are also worthwhile to consider.
XII. For Further Reading
A. Books
1. How to Pray for Inner Healing for Yourself and Others, Rita Bennett, Revell, Old Tappan, NJ, 1984. Mrs. Bennet has an active ministry conducting workshops which train laypersons to use prayer to bring inner healing to Christians.
2. A Handbook for Inner Healing, William Gurney, n.d. Unpublished manuscript by a pioneer and leader in the inner healing movement.
3. Listening to Others, Joyce Huggett, IVP, Downers Grove, IL, 1988. Although not well-known in the U.S., this book has been a best-seller among Christians in Great Britain, and has relevance for the therapeutic listening needed as a prelude to healing of memories.
4. Restoring the Foundations: Counseling By the Living Word, Chester and Betty Kylstra. Proclaiming His Word, Inc. Santa Rosa Beach, FL, 1996. While I don’t agree with everything in this book, it is a very thought-provoking counseling manual, taking psychological and theological insights and putting them back into primarily a spiritually-oriented model for counseling. The section on Soul/Spirit Hurts is most related to the concept of healing of memories, although the whole manual has relevance.
5. Healing of Memories: Prayer and Confession--Steps to Inner Healing, Dennis and Matthew Linn. Paulist Press, New York, 1974. A brief book describing how these two Catholic Fathers have integrated the sacrament of penance (reconciliation) with prayer for inner healing. Includes brief chapters with discussion questions and experiential exercises.
6. Healing Life's Hurts: Healing Memories Through Five Stages of Forgiveness. Dennis and Matthew Linn. Paulist Press, New York, 1978. A more comprehensive discussion than the book above. It integrates concepts from Kubler-Ross (likening healing a memory to the concept of dying to a resentment) with Christian theology.
7. Praying With One Another for Healing. Matthew and Dennis Linn. Paulist Press, New York, 1984. Healing the Eight Stages of Life. Paulist Press, New York, 1988. Further elaboration of their ideas on inner healing.
8. Healing: Francis MacNutt. Notre Dame: Ave Maria Press, 1974. An extremely well-balanced biblical discussion of the topic of healing. Includes discussion of four basic kinds of healing, of which inner healing for emotional problems is one kind. Also has a very thoughtful chapter on reasons people are not always healed.
9. The Power to Heal: Francis MacNutt. Notre Dame: Ave Maria Press, 1977. A discussion of some of MacNutt's experiences and learnings after being actively involved in a healing ministry for several years. Primarily focused on physical healing, but many of the principles have an analogous relationship in the ministry of inner healing.
10. How to Do Inner Healing: Francis MacNutt. Christian Healing Ministries: Jacksonville, FL. A series of ten tapes. Cost: approximately $30.00.
11. Deliverance from Evil Spirits, Francis MacNutt. Chosen Books (Baker): Grand Rapids, MI, 1995. One of the issues in healing of memories is the relationship between deliverance ministry and healing of memories.
12. To Forgive is Human: How to Put Your Past in the Past. Michael McCullough, Steven Sandage, and Everett Worthington. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1997. Not a book on healing of memories per se, but a book on the process of forgiveness and its importance in psychological healing.
13. Memory Healing: God Renewing the Mind. Robert McDonald. Atlanta: Cross Roads Books, n.d. (approx. 1979). An attempt by a Christian psychiatrist to give a more systematic explanation of the theory and process of inner healing from a psychodynamic perspective. There is a helpful section discussing the problems that result when charismatic Christians diagnose all problems as the result of demon possession.
14. The Broken Image (Crossway, Wheaton, IL, 1981), Healing the Homosexual (Crossway, 1985), Listening Prayer: Learning to Hear God’s Voice and Keep a Prayer Journal (Baker, Grand Rapids, 1994), and The Healing Presence (Baker, Grand Rapids, 1994). Leanne Payne. The first two books are on the use of healing of memories for people who wish to leave homosexuality. The latter two books are on journaling and healing of memories for all people. This author, a Research Fellow at Yale Divinity School, has probably done (along with the Kylstra’s and Ed Smith) the most extensive theorizing on how inner healing can produce significant personality change, and not just be a method to reduce phobic responses to traumatic memories.
15. The Healing Gifts of the Spirit: Agnes Sanford. New York: Holman, 1966. A semi-autobiographical account of Mrs. Sanford's own emotional struggles and the experiences that she believes resulted in inner healing for herself and which can do the same for others. Mrs. Sanford was considered a pioneer in the inner healing movement and was actively involved in developing the School of Pastoral Care which continues an active inner healing ministry today.
16. The Transformation of the Inner Man: John and Paula Sandford. Plainfield, NJ: Bridge, 1982. A very thorough explanation of the Sandford's approach to inner healing. The Sandford's are not to be confused with Agnes Sanford (see above). This book is written primarily for laypersons who wish to do healing of memories.
17. A Comprehensive Guide to Deliverance and Inner Healing: John and Mark Sandford. Grand Rapids, MI: Chosen Books, 1992. This book contains some good points about differences between deliverance and inner healing, and some valid points about mistakes made when pastors and evangelists employ deliverance methods in situations that probably should be treated with inner healing or other methods. However, there are other points, such as their tendency to view all psychopathology as having a demonic origin, about which I have some questions. I recommend that you not suggest this book to others until you have reviewed it yourself.
18. Inner Healing, Michael Scanlon, New York, Paulist Press, 1974. Good early book on healing of memories by a respected rector and former president of St. Francis Seminary.
19. Healing Prayer, Barbara Schlemon, Walker and Company, 1986. For the last few decades Ms. Schlemon has been actively involved in the ministries of physical and psychological healing through prayer.
20. Healing for Damaged Emotions (1981) and Healing of Memories (1985) David Seamands, Victor Books, Wheaton, IL. Excellent books by a conservative evangelical pastor, former missionary, and seminary teacher (Asbury) on the approach to inner healing he has developed within his pastoral ministry.
21. Forgive and Forget: Healing the Hurts We Don’t Deserve, Lewis Smedes, Harper & Row, San Francisco, 1984. A book on Christian forgiveness that does not use a healing of memories approach. Interesting to compare the two approaches.
22. Theophostic Prayer Ministry: Basic Seminar Manual, Ed Smith, New Creation Publishing, Campbellsville, Kentucky (2007) and Theophostic Prayer Ministry Student Workbook, Ed Smith, New Creation Publishing, Campbellsville, Kentucky (2007). Remember that Ed Smith prefers to use the term “mind renewal” rather than “healing of memories.” For many helpful resources related to TPM, go to
http://www.theophostic.com/
23. The Gift of Inner Healing (1976) and The Experience of Inner Healing (1977). Ruth Carter Stapleton. Waco: Word Books. The first book is a semi-autobiographical account of Mrs. Stapleton's theoretical understanding and practical experiences with inner healing. The second is a more extensive treatment of inner healing as used by this author. Both are highly readable. Mrs. Stapleton's psychology has been criticized as simplistic and her theology as unorthodox at certain points. Both criticisms are true, but I still believe there is value in reading these books.
24. Inner Healing through Healing of Memories (privately published, 1975) and Set Free through Inner Healing (1978). Betty Tapscott. Houston, TX: Hunter Ministries. A discussion of this charismatic Southern Baptist couple's ministry. Includes a discussion of their views regarding the binding of oppressing spirits in conjunction with healing of memories.
25. Counseling and Psychotherapy: A Christian Perspective (2011). Siang-Yang Tan. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, pp. 345-351.
B. ARTICLES
1. My Experience with Inner Healing, by Alice. Journal of Christian Healing, Vol. 2, No. 2, Fall, 1980, pp. 16-19. Thoughtful article by a woman who experienced various types of psychotherapy with little benefit, and then worked with a Christian therapist who used inner healing methods to help her.
2. Ruth, by Brooks Alexander. Spiritual Counterfeits Project Journal, Vol. 4, No. 1, April, 1980, pp. 2-10. Article extremely critical of Ruth Carter Stapleton and her endorsement of healing of memories.
3. Guidelines for Leading Symbolic Visualizations, by Dick Busch. Faith at Work, November, 1978, pp. 29-30. Fifteen practical guidelines when using guided imagery.
C. BOOKS HIGHLY CRITICAL OF HEALING OF MEMORIES [Note: I believe that many of the criticisms found in the following books are either psychologically or biblically unsound, but I include them in this reference list so you may read these critiques if you wish to do so.]
1. The Seduction of Christianity: Spiritual Discernment in the Last Days, David Hunt and T. A. McMahon, Eugene, Oregon, Harvest House Publishers, 1985.
2. Psychoheresy: The Psychological Seduction of Christianity, Martin and Deidre Bobgan, Santa Barbara, CA, Eastgate Publishers, 1987.
3. Competent to Minister: The Biblical Care of Souls, Martin and Deidre Bobgan, Santa Barbara, CA, Eastgate Publishers, 1996.
4. Inner Healing: Deliverance or Deception?, Don Matzat, Eugene, Oregon, Harvest House Publishers, 1987.
[1] Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.
Yes, I am aware of those approaches and many of them have empirical support. One of the reasons I still like Inner Healing is that it brings believers closer to Christ--they go away saying the Lord healed me. Obviously the "bottom up" approaches are probably the preferred ones when working with unbelievers.
Henry,
I appreciate your excellent overview of inner healing. I have read almost all the books you have mentioned in this paper and practiced inner healing for about 30 years with tremendous results. After reading Rita Bennett’s book, “Emotionally Free,” I came away with my summary statement of her approach, which I have shared with her successor and she asked for a copy of it. “Inner healing is allowing God to replace the pictures in the heart gallery of our minds, removing pictures that do not have Jesus in them and replacing them with pictures that do.”
So inner healing is a living encounter with the living Christ, and it involves pictures, since a picture is worth a thousand words, and thus maintains a thousandfold impact on healing our hurts and wounds.
Inner healing became one in a sequence of seven prayers I pray over people with heart wounds. The synergies of the seven complementary prayers working together really do a complete and powerful work in the client’s life. All seven involve living encounters with the Lord. I discovered and wrote about them when Kay Cox prayed them over me while I was in Australia. It was the most profound 2-hour prayer counseling experience I had ever experienced and know I must write them up, which I have done in our Prayers That Heal the Heart book. https://www.cwgministries.org/store/prayers-heal-heart-ebook