The following is the final installment of our discussion of Mike Hutchings’ formative book, Supernatural Freedom From The Captivity of Trauma.
THE SCHEMES OF SATAN TO TORMENT THE TRAUMATIZED
It’s important to understand that author Mike Hutchings is not against traumatized people seeking psychiatric treatment. As he mentions in chapter 5, Hutchings believes that a person suffering from post-traumatic stress can receive much-needed care and help they need from mainstream psychiatric means.
However, in his experiences and decades in helping people from all over the world overcome PTSD, he believes that only true and lifelong healing can take place if Jesus is also involved.
“I am not advocating that people stop seeking medical help. I believe that trauma sufferers can benefit from treatments available today from the medical community and from healing in Jesus Christ; the two can go hand in hand.” - Mike Hutchings, Supernatural Freedom Pg. 77
As John 10:10 explains, the devil’s entire purpose is to steal, kill, and destroy. He is a master thief with an endless supply of tools at his disposal, Trauma happens to be one of his most effective and life-destroying instruments.
So, while undergoing psychiatric treatment may be effective in alleviating the symptoms of trauma, without Jesus’ healing hands and merciful grace, fully overcoming Satan’s most destructive tool of evil is impossible.
“There is a holistic healing that only Jesus can bring to a soul that has been shattered, through reintegration of all of the shattered pieces in the power of the Spirit of God.” - Mike Hutchings Supernatural Freedom, Pg. 78
GOD’S HEART TO RESTORE AND HEAL THE TRAUMATIZED
God is the ultimate healer. Every man, woman, and child is beloved and treasured by God because they are creations that pleases God’s heart because they are exactly the way he created them to be.
What’s more, God’s eternal love for us is also unconditional. As deeply flawed as we are, God loves us in spite of our mistakes, sins, and failures.
Rather than reject us at our worst, God showers us with love, encouraging and guiding our souls to spiritual freedom. The only question remains, will we choose to accept his unconditional patience and choose this life of spiritual freedom for ourselves?
In western culture, we like to think of ourselves as the Christ-Bearers of the world. And while the west is populated by the overwhelming majority of the world’s Christian population, it is our pride in bearing his name that all-too-often befalls us.
Many of us feel as though if we adopt the right religious “formula” and apply it to our faith, we can effectively hijack the almighty power of God and fix our problems.
However, while pursuing a life in Christ is the foundation of every Christians’ life’s mission, we cannot bend the will of God to fit our personal agendas. Rather, God’s will and the power of the Holy Spirit will guide us to the calling He has set for us – regardless of our own convictions and desired paths that we merely claim are His laid-well plans.
Unfortunately, humans have a proclivity to blame God for our struggles and brokenness. In doing so, we either consciously or subconsciously put a wedge in between ourselves and the holy spirit. After all, it’s difficult to trust and give over your life to someone you blame for your plight. This, of course, is farcical and misplaced anger towards the very Heavenly Father who wants nothing more than to restore the lives of those of us who are broken.
The Enemy of God twists our perceptions and leads us astray, angry, and hurt, leading many of us to sever connection with God - the only thing that can grant us spiritual freedom from trauma.
No matter what you have been through, no matter how you have reacted to your life and the ways in which people have treated you, God’s thoughts and feelings about you have not changed. You are precious in His sight, so precious that He sacrificed His only Son to rescue you from the bondage of the enemy.
GOD’S INVITATION FOR YOU
God is inviting you to enter into the dream He has for your life in a fresh way. It begins by embracing God’s truth that you are the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ. This is how God sees you and how He wants you to see yourself. He is eagerly waiting to put the shattered pieces of your life back together as He restores your soul.
His goodness and mercy are running after you every day of your life with His invitation to be His beloved who dwells in His house forever. King David wrote Psalm 23 as a way to metaphorically express his understanding of the Lord as the good shepherd who lovingly cares for His flock, keeping us safe and providing for our physical and spiritual needs.
God’s goodness and grace are evident in every line of Psalm 23. Receive God’s invitation to walk with Him right now through His green pastures, to rest beside His still waters, and to walk the path of righteousness He has for you. He is inviting you to sit at the table He has set in the presence of your enemies and marvel at how He heals you and invites you to receive His spirit of adoption so that you may live in freedom with Him now and forever.
THE FREEDOM AND GRACE OF THE CROSS
Freedom is the most precious thing a person can have. Unfortunately, to live free to some is a luxury they never fully obtain or enjoy. While being free in terms of the world, such as slavery, is something that a person cannot control or change, spiritual freedom is a different story. By giving ourselves to God, we can be delivered from our existential woes - anxiety, fear, trauma - that bind many of us from living the life God has designed for us to enjoy.
That said, as Mike Hutchings points out, spiritual freedom from internal maladies is something that one must fight for. At the beginning of chapter 7, Hutchings uses the movie, Braveheart as an example of what one must be willing to do in order to gain such freedom. Like, the movie’s heroic protagonist, we must be willing to lay everything on the line, including ourselves for the sake of others, in Jesus’ name.
