Imagine that you slip and fall on a sidewalk. You scrape up your knee good. You go home and put one of those great big bandaids on it because you can't imagine cleaning it with peroxide and warm water. Every day you wake up and the scrape is oozing; your knee is red and painful. You have a difficult time walking properly but you just can't bring yourself to cleaning it... it would just hurt too much. You've thought about seeking professional help but you're too embarrassed and you figure the scrape will eventually get better on its own. Every day you change the bandaid and every day you're in more pain but you don't really notice it anymore because you're just getting used to it. 

The truth is, this scrape is infected and it's affecting your whole life including those around you. You're ignoring the problem hoping it will go away, but little do you know that this one little scrape is poisoning your entire body. It won't be long before you fall sick. 

Does this sound at all like what you might be doing with some of your emotional hurts and challenges? Sure, it might be a bit of a stretch, but in the end... is it really?

Many of us will admit to ignoring our problems for a few reasons: a) we think our problems are too difficult to face. b) we have no clue how to address our problems. c) we're afraid of what might happen or how it will affect our lives if we actually deal with our problems head on. d) we think that our hurts or other problems will sort themselves out on their own.

So let me ask you these:

- Is someone walking all over you?

- Do you have resentments that you carry around all day long?

- Is there someone you feel envious or jealous of?

- Is something or someone causing you heartache?

- What beliefs, thoughts and feelings steal your happiness?

- What re-occurring issues affect your daily life?

Next:

- What is one small step you can take to start dealing with your hurts or other challenges?

- Who is one person you can talk to?

It can be super scary to work on our stuff... I get it. I think it takes a lot of courage and strength to face our problems. I also think when a person chooses to heal their life, they are also choosing ultimate freedom.

Make the choice to clean your wounds and to heal them properly. Know that a bandaid is often not enough. The time to heal is now!