Balm and Healing from Jesus

As a child, Johann Heermann battled health issues. After suffering one severe illness, his mother vowed that if he lived he would be trained for the ministry. That vow was kept.

Born in Silesia in Germany on this day in 1585, he went on to become a deacon and then pastor of the Lutheran church in the small town of Koeben near his birthplace. This was a town that suffered during the Thirty Years’ War, and Heermann several times needed to flee, narrowly escaping death and losing all his possessions. Then, in 1634, a throat problem forced him to stop preaching.

In 1644, he wrote a hymn called “Jesus, Grant That Balm and Healing.” He wrote about how, through life’s challenges, he had learned to depend on Jesus. He wrote, “Jesus, grant that balm and healing in Thy holy wounds I find, every hour that I am feeling, pains of body and of mind.” He could turn to Jesus when he faced temptation, and “should Satan press me hard, let me then be on my guard, saying, ‘Christ for me was wounded,’ that the tempter flee confounded.” He knew that by the stripes of Jesus he was made whole, and that “when I’m faint, Thy cross revives me, granting new life to my soul.” He realized that God was his Rock and Tower, and that he could depend on Him.

Right now, in the midst of the challenges of life, Jesus can be your balm. He can take your burdens away and give you His peace, and help you face every temptation. Remember, by His wounds, you were healed. Call on Him today.