On May 11th, an article by CNN was posted that shed light on something very important happening to the freed “Chibok girls”: their healing.
According to CNN, who had a “rare glimpse” inside the Chibok girls’ recovery, the now 106 young women are living in a government-owned building that is much like a hostel or boarding school for the girls, along with an on-sight psychiatrist, psychologist, a social worker, and two matrons, “one of whom is from Chibok” (source). The girls have a scheduled, yet somewhat normal lifestyle that involves taking educational and lifestyle courses, playing handball with the other girls, and scheduled times for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. “I remember vividly when they were first released, they had symptoms of PTSD, nightmares, insomnia. The girls are doing very well,” CNN reported their psychologist saying, while noting that he said they have made “tremendous improvement” (source). Yet, throughout all of this, there is still healing to be had; shrapnel still lives uncovered in the girls’ bodies, and surely, emotional, spiritual, and mental shrapnel lay hidden in them, too.
But, most of all, these girls, contrary to what was thought earlier, are reportedly not there against their own will or against the will of their parents. “Parents have been to visit them here. They gave government consent for them to be here. …We did not compel anybody,” says Nigeria’s women’s minister Aisha Alhassan, according to CNN (source). With such resources, the idea of the Chibok schoolgirls– now Chibok’s young women– finding lives of normalcy and wholeness seem possible.
The steward of ISAIAH 62 PRAYER MINISTRY, and surely others, have been praying for the Chibok young women’s healing for quite some time, and it was a breath of fresh air to gain insight on this beautiful, yet bittersweet process. Although this is wonderful, it is all too important to truly consider that real healing comes from Christ—knowing Him, and being known by Him.
A Story of Emotional Healing
In the book of Genesis, chapters 37-50 tell the biblical account of Joseph, Jacob (also known as Israel’s) son. In it, Joseph has dreams of his brothers, father and mother bowing before him; he also is extremely favored by his father, so much so that he receives a beautiful, ornate robe to wear (Genesis 37:1-3, 5-11). This jealousy not only creates tension between Jacob and the rest of his sons; it causes his other sons to be murderous with jealousy toward Joseph (Genesis 37:4).
As written in Genesis 37:12- 28, incredibly envious and full of rage toward Joseph, Joseph’s brothers want to plot his death, but decide instead to put him in an empty cistern, and further sell him into slavery– human trafficking. Lying to their father, they brought Joseph’s coat dipped in goat blood, claiming an animal had killed him (Genesis 37:31-32).
Taken into an entirely new land against his own will, Joseph undergoes much heartbreak: from going to jail because of doing the right thing (Genesis 39), to being forgotten in that jail for a long period of time (Genesis 40:23), what his own flesh and blood brothers did to him hurt him in unimaginable ways.
What could have been seen as impossible for Joseph under such circumstances, Joseph not only came to fully forgive his brothers; but every relationship they ever had with him was restored, so much so that He “reassured them” of the fact that he would never repay their wrongs with evil, and “spoke kindly to them” (Genesis 50:21, NIV). This is not even to mention the fact that Jacob was able to see his son, Joseph again, after believing he was dead for so many years!
Under such horrific circumstances, what could have ever healed Joseph’s heart so wholly? Through the weeping (Genesis 42:24; 43:30; 45:1; 50:17), the anger, and finally, the telling of the truth, Joseph and his brothers were reconciled by nothing less than the grace and goodness of Christ. Each step of the arduous way, Christ was there—ready to provide the Peace Joseph and his family needed, and ready to bring good out of the evil sin that his brothers committed.
This is the true, and only, Hope for anyone who has undergone heartbreak and trauma, including the Chibok girls. Joseph, having gone through such deep brokenness, realized and saw the fact that Jesus wants to heal and mend what is fractured and torn. All one needs to do is seek Him, allowing His Will to be done, not their own (Psalm 34:14).
So, no matter how deep the trauma, or wide the pain, there is Hope in Christ alone. Let’s trust Him– it is His Will that we would have life, and life abundantly, and only He can make it so.
Do you know Jesus?
“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”
(John 10:10, NKJV)
2,000 years ago, God stepped off his throne, and came into the world, putting on human flesh. His name is Jesus the Christ, and He came that we might have real, abundant life. That does not just mean real abundance here on earth, but rather, eternal life with Him, the Father, and the Holy Spirit, in heaven.
His body was scarred so that we might be healed. Read more about Him, and meet Him, here.
Please pray for…
– The Chibok girls who have been freed. As it has been said before, these girls are just starting a lifetime’s journey of healing, and prayers that Christ would be their Lord and Savior on this journey would be appreciated.
– The Nigerian government. Please pray that as more of the girls are being negotiated for, Christ would be Lord over those negotiating with terrorists, and that His Will would be done,
not our own.
– The rescue, and de-radicalization of girls who do not want to be free. As stated in another post, there are reportedly four Chibok schoolgirls who do not want to be released. Please pray in Jesus’ Name that they would realize their need for Christ—and for freedom.
