Healed Within but in Recovery: When Wholeness Needs Time to Settle In

Not long ago, I sat across from a client whose story pierced me right in the heart. She told me, through tired eyes and a trembling voice, “I know God has healed me… but I still feel so weak.”

Her words echoed something I’ve felt many times myself. She wasn’t sick — at least not in the way the world defines sickness. She was healed, yet her spirit and body were still catching up to that truth.

As she spoke about years of chronic stress, emotional exhaustion, and trying to hold it all together for everyone else, I saw a familiar struggle: that sacred space between breakthrough and full restoration. It’s what I call being Healed Within but in Recovery.

When she described feeling drained even after doing “everything right” — staying connected with God through prayer and meditation, taking her supplements, showing up for work and family — I could see the tension in her. She wanted to run in her new freedom, but her legs were still shaking from what she’d survived.

We talked about how healing often comes in layers. The spirit may rise first, declaring victory, while the body and emotions move at a slower, gentler pace. It’s not a setback; it’s synchronization. It is true, the healing has already happened — now your systems are learning to live in that new peace.

For a moment, think of a time you—or someone close to you—had major surgery. The surgeon removes the disturbance, closes the incision, and the medical team declares that the procedure was successful. At the appropriate time, you’re moved to the recovery room, then later released and advised you will need some form of rehabilitation.

When cleared for recovery and rehabilitation, many patients want to quickly return to their normal routines. Yet the medical team often says to "take it slow" because the body needs time to adjust. Even when the pain is gone, there’s still a period when the body must relearn trust: that it’s safe to stretch, to breathe deeply, to be touched. In addition, lingering tenderness, swelling, or fatigue may surface after the surgery — not because something is wrong, but because the body is still learning to live in what’s new.

Healing of the soul works much the same way. When the Lord performs a deep work in us — whether through revelation, deliverance, or sheer grace — we may still feel the soreness of what was cut away. That doesn’t mean we aren’t healed. It means our spirit is learning how to walk again in a body and mind that once carried pain.

When I shared this scenario with my client, she began to understand that her “need” for peace was not a sign of laziness or avoidance. After years of surviving chaos, she now has a divine prescription to rest and rehabilitate. Some of us have spent so long in fight or flight that calm feels foreign — even suspicious. But it’s in the stillness that God rebuilds what stress once tore down.

The truth that’s been consistently revealed — in both my clients and in myself — is this:

Healing doesn’t always shout “Hallelujah” and run down an aisle. Sometimes it whispers, “Rest” and unfolds slowly and steadily through naps, nourishment, and saying no without guilt.

If you find yourself in this same place — knowing you’re free, but still finding your footing — give yourself grace. You’re not broken; you’re rebuilding. You’re not faithless; you’re faithful enough to rest, recover, and rehabilitate. Take your time. Let peace become your proof of progress. You are healed — but in recovery.

Can I pray with you?

Lord, thank You for the healing You’ve already begun in us. Teach us to recover well with gentleness, gratitude, and grace. Remind us that peace is not a luxury, but a need. And when we grow weary in recovery, breathe new strength into our souls.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Wynter Michelle Lewis

Herbalist + Holistic Wellness Coach

www.WyntersSpirit.com