Mar. 18: The Grace of Brokenness

On January 2, 2009, Kevin Wells—a healthy 40-year-old husband and father of three— had just gone to bed when a malformed tangle of veins and arteries in his brain suddenly burst.  The sharp pain from the blood and other fluids that were filling his head grew worse as he and his wife waited for an ambulance.

Wells was diagnosed with a brain hemorrhage, and given emergency brain surgery.  His situation remained dire for the next few weeks, so he came to lean on his faith to find physical and spiritual healing.  During an interview on Christopher Closeup about his memoir, Burst, Wells said he endured so much pain he felt like Satan was tempting him to give up on life.  That’s when he started a contemplative prayer focused on Jesus that calmed him down.  At one point, said Wells, he saw Jesus putting His hand on his head and saying, “It’s going to be okay.”

Though Wells slowly found healing with the help of doctors, nurses, and constant care from loved ones, he also credits God—with whom he’s developed a close relationship—for bringing him back from the edge.

He went about doing good and healing.  (Acts 10:38)

May I be a source of healing to the suffering, Jesus.