God Forgives Your Sins, Heals, and Sets Captives Free

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Narrator

Welcome to Insights on Healing, a weekly podcast. Today’s Episode is entitled: ‘God Forgives Your Sins, Heals, and sets Captives Free.” You will learn from my testimony, how God forgives, heals, and set me free and how he can do the same for you.

I am Joan M. Blake, author, and I am your host. The purpose of Insights on Healing podcast is to provide content that brings inner healing and restoration to individuals dealing with trauma and difficult life situations.

Today’s podcast will be centered on how I learned and applied the power of healing to my life and how I have grown spiritually through difficulties I have endured. My name is Joan M. Blake, I am a Christian author, speaker, spiritual-life coach, and blogger. I am originally from Trinidad and Tobago, an island in the Caribbean. My parents were tailor and seamstress by trade, and I learned the power of faith by seeing my parents work with their hands to provide for us. They were strict and taught us to study and work hard to be successful. Being the oldest of six, I was expected to take the lead in this charge, so I studied at a technical school and worked at an insurance company to help my parents financially. I left my job and came to America to attend college, work, and to sponsor my parents, and in the process, was able to gain my independence.

I am a wife and mother of four adults and I have six grandchildren. I loved seeing my children grow and enjoyed being involved with them in their school related activities, church activities, birthdays, sport events, and vacations. Every birthday was a big celebration. I enjoyed these celebrations so much. While I enjoyed my life tremendously, I was always busy with work and found little time to rest. I held a teaching position at a community college and resorted to a home-based accounting business so I could have time to take my children to their medical appointments. When my children got older, I worked for the public sector, leaving it to attend seminary and care for my special-needs daughter.

My first healing journey started when Em was three months old and I was scheduled to undergo surgery. While I was at the hospital, my aunt Gracie stayed at the house to take care of my baby. Individuals from the church where I was attending, brought food for my family and took turns bringing my children to visit me. I was so grateful. In the hospital, I listened as nurses encouraged me to slow down and take care of myself. I got rest from my weariness and God healed me.

My second experience was when I had surgery in the early 1990’s and was sent home one Christmas day for a few hours. I felt heart-broken to know that I would be separated from my family. I had no idea that God was giving me the rest I needed. As I continued on my life-journey, I realized that my life was simply about work, inside and outside, of my home with little time to rest. Although my husband Carl was by my side during the process of our daughter’s illness, and other issues that we faced, I was experiencing a lot of stress in our household. Working part-time had given me some freedom as I had personal care assistants come to the house on the days that I worked. Eventually, I left my job to take care of our daughter which ended up being more difficult and stressful for me. On my quest to get rest, I embarked on a personal retreat one weekend per ye to get in touch with my inner thoughts, write about my feelings, and seek the Lord.

Years later, going through my journals that I had amassed, I was surprised to find that I had been dealing with anxiety, anger, and unforgiveness and decided to pray, confess, and repent of these emotions to God and God forgave me. I was healed from my anxiety, anger, and unforgiveness. I could go to God anytime and give all my worries to him.

I felt that my sicknesses then, and later, were connected to the condition of my heart. When my heart was overwhelmed, my flesh became ill when I could no longer control the struggles that I was experiencing in my life. My healing would come through complete surrender to God. When I surrendered to God, I began searching for an understanding of who I am and what my purpose is. I was already writing in my journals when I thought about writing and publishing books to share my experiences with readers. My heart was fixed on God and I had found my purpose by writing and sharing.

God had created in me a clean heart; I was happier when I forgave others and loved them the way God loved me — unconditionally. I understood fully that God is my father and I am His child. I am His and He is mine. He has promised never to leave or forsake me, and that healing is in his wings. When I am weak, He is strong, and He will carry me and guide me during my lifetime. I am not my own. I have been bought with a price, the price of Jesus’ death on the cross. He died in my place so I can live freely: free from anxiety, anger, unforgiveness, and sickness. By his stripes I have been healed. I received healing not because I deserved it, but because of God’s love for me. God forgives, heals, and sets captives free.

God used me in my broken state. He showed me that I could love my special-needs daughter and others just as he loved me. He wanted me to understand that it was not a place that my daughter needed to be, but a place that she needed to be in my heart, just as the places I have secured in my heart for my other children. He showed me that my life did not have to be perfect as my parents had wanted it to be, but it was in the struggles that I experienced that He would make me into the person He wanted me to be. He wanted me to know that my family would continue to bring me joy, and I have already seen this from being at two weddings and the grandchildren that I have loved and enjoyed, and seeing how Em’s story has brought our family together. Most of all, God wanted me to know that His love covers a multitude of sin and His acceptance of me was based on his love.

I want to thank you for listening to this podcast. If you are experiencing anxiety, anger, unforgiveness or any emotion that prevents you from loving others, I pray that you will surrender and give all your worries to God. God wants to take your burdens from you so you can have rest. He says: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matt 11:28-30).