Photo by Isaac Wendland on Unsplash

Last week’s hilarious and spiritual article about feet came at the right time for me. Just the other day, I went to physiotherapy after spraining my ankle (yet again), and I found out that I have chronic ankle problems. While I play ball hockey in the summertime, the ankle twists happen in regular life, when I am walking on uneven ground or when I am taking out the garbage. It’s not fun, and it’s very discouraging, but it’s led me on a journey where I’ve learned profound spiritual truths, not only from last week’s article but also from my physiotherapist. She pointed out that physical healing can occur in three ways: recovery, flexibility, and strengthening. There’s a great parallel here in our relationship with Christ.

Recovery—the most vital and important healing process in any injury or injury prevention. This is a time for rest, refreshment, and reset. For me, during ankle injuries, this meant cold packs, elevated feet, no running, and being unable to play my favourite sport—ball hockey. It was definitely something I did not want, but I enjoyed a slower pace of life, watched more movies, and received loving massages from my spouse (she’s wonderful). Similarly, recovery in the spiritual life is ongoing; our disease is that we are sinners, and we are in constant need of mercy and forgiveness. “When Jesus heard this, he said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician but those who are sick; I have not come to call the righteous but sinners’” (Mark 2:17). God takes our brokenness, washes us clean, and restores us to new life. If there’s something weighing on your heart, bring it to the light and go to confession. It is a great gift. Recovery means the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It is the touch of repentance, the icepack of contrition, and the couch of faith that give us the power to find our true healing in the Lord.

Flexibility—an important step in the healing process that helps us play sports and continue exercising. For our physical health, it looks like stretching out our muscles. My ankle injury in part was due to a tight hip; it was a symptom of a higher-muscle ligament that connected to the tissue around my foot. In our spiritual life, being flexible is not my way or the highway, but God’s way: letting ourselves be stretched by giving Him permission! Flexibility is essentially following the words of Mary, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word” (Luke 1:38). Doing God’s will is important. “What would you have me do, Lord?” Having a daily prayer life is key. It develops awareness of what God is doing in our hearts and what He would like us to do. The how is not always revealed, for it is faith to which we are called. May we become flexible enough to do His work while not knowing the whole plan. It is a mystery and can be done by His grace.

Strength—a key part of injury recovery and injury prevention. For our physical health, this looks like conducting routine exercises, which improves our strength and makes us faster and more powerful. This step involves weight training, proper dieting and nutrition, and cardiovascular workouts. Similarly, in our spiritual lives, we receive strength through the Eucharist. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, “As bodily nourishment restores lost strength, so the Eucharist strengthens our charity, which tends to be weakened in daily life; and this living charity wipes away venial sins. Since Christ died for us out of love, when we celebrate the memorial of his death at the moment of sacrifice we ask that love may be granted to us by the coming of the Holy Spirit. We humbly pray that in the strength of this love by which Christ willed to die for us, we, by receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit, may be able to consider the world as crucified for us, and to be ourselves as crucified to the world….Having received the gift of love, let us die to sin and live for God.” (CCC 1394). The Eucharist is our spiritual food. It sustains us for our journey, nourishes our souls, and ultimately helps us grow in charity, becoming united with Jesus Christ. 

This is recovery, flexibility, and strength put into practice for our spiritual lives. Confession brings us back to God; we respond by giving God permission; and the Eucharist gives us continued strength to move forward in love. We are able to play the sports we want to play, go on the runs we wish to run, and help our teammates, family, and friends by being the best version of ourselves, both physically and spiritually. Which area are you lacking right now? Use this time to become more rested, flexible, or stronger. It’s time to grow; it’s springtime!