When Jesus had called the twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. Luke 9:1-2

How do we go about healing others?

Henri Nouwen in his book The Wounded Healer says "it seems necessary to re-establish the basic principle that no one can help anyone without becoming involved, without entering with his whole person into the painful situation, without taking the risk of becming hurt, wounded or even destroyed in the process. The beginning and the end of all Christian leadership is to give your life for others. Thinking about martyrdom can be an escape unless we realize that real martyrdom means a witness that starts with the willingness to cry with those who cry, laugh with those who laugh, and to make one's own painful and joyful experiences as sources of clarification and understanding. The great illusion of leadership is to think that man can be led out of the desert by someone who has never been there."

We have to be willing to get dirty. We have to be willing to share our pain with others. That is one of the hardest things to do, yet that is where God's healing begins. To open ourselves up is risky, but it is the only way to the healing and wholeness that God wants for us. The paradox is that as we help others to heal, so then God heals us.