I know, right? It’s quite a paradoxical sentence. That topic right there. How does a truly wounded person heal others? After all, the wounded person should be more interested in getting healed first, right? True! I’m not about to write directly about Jesus Christ. We know He is the perfect example of a wounded healer. Right on the cross, amidst the pains of torn flesh and broken bones, he continued healing the world. He forgave sinners and gave us a chance.

Rafatu was raped at seven. She became crazy about sex, and was determined to make others like her. She swore she’d break as many hearts as possible. She had good reason, right? She was wounded and hurting. Someone had to pay…

What about Bisi? She was lured into lesbianism by a friend in the University. She sometimes wants to change, but she can’t find the will power. Now she has made up her mind to get young ladies into the Lesbian club. She even runs a brothel on the side. She has no apologies to anyone. If her friend hadn’t done this to her, she would still be that harmless Virgin…

Ngozi’s parents never had any money per se. She’d been on the streets for as long as she could remember. She couldn’t trust anyone. Life was wicked and harsh. She was determined to be hard and cold as well. There was no room for compassion in her heart. She stole at every opportunity and lied effortlessly; she really didn’t care. This was the life she knew, and she’d gotten quite good at it…

Effiong was addicted to pornography because his friend had brought a porn magazine to school when he was still in Jss2.   From that he had graduated to masturbation. Then he’d experimented with his own blood sister for years. Today, he is a lecturer in the University, he smokes, drinks, and he is also a serial abuser. He thinks his behaviour is justified. If only his friend hadn’t introduced him to the porn magazine…

Ovie was abused as a child in a same sexed boarding school. He later began abusing boys his age. Then he moved into ministry. Even as a preacher, he continues to abuse younger boys till date. He is very much wounded and he can’t stop hurting others. He thinks it’s not his fault. After all, he was abused himself. He doesn’t think much about being a man of God…

John is a priest who does not care much about his parishioners. He abuses them from the pulpit, and even slaps anyone that dares challenge his authority. He has problems with authority himself and disrespects his elders. He even snaps at anyone who tries to correct him. He doesn’t care about anyone and anything. He was frustrated as a seminarian and he almost was not ordained. But now, he had sworn to make them pay; all those wanted him expelled. He thinks he is justified. Why not?

We could go on and on. But these stories are becoming too cliché. We do all these negative things because we have been wronged or persuaded or pushed into doing them. We love less because we’ve been hurt and disappointed ourselves. We hug our wounds and continue to make things worse. We have become wounded wounders. And sometimes we wished things were different. Right? But truth is, everyone has been hurt sometime. It’s not enough justification to turn the world into such a big vicious arena of revenge and counter revenge. Why don’t we try being wounded healers? From where I sit, I don’t think we have another option.

Friends, reach beyond those wounds and heal someone. Make the world a better place. God help us all!