Grace and trauma

With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. Acts 4:33 (NRSV)


The early church began with trauma victims. The apostles and the followers of Christ had recently witnessed the crucifixion of their beloved leader, the kindest, truest, godliest, and most perfect man who had ever lived. The crucifixion caused much trauma in the lives of the people of the early church. It was such a tragedy, and although Christians today experience trauma, but it will never re-create the trauma that Christ suffered through crucifixion.

The key to growth through trauma is expressed in the verse above. It is grace. The favor of God allowed the early Christians to minister to each other by sharing their testimony of resurrection and hope, and by growing in grace toward each other. A common psychological healing process for victims is to minister to each other in their common need and provide hope to each other. An interesting thought to ponder is that the modern psychological analysis of the trauma victim's recovery process recommends grace as a healing device, which is a healing process that God has always provided for us.