Living On Purpose In Christ | Christianity, Biblical Encouragement, Aromatherapy, Devotions, Essential Oils, Journal Prompts

126 | When Yesterday Still Speaks: Gentle Healing for Wounds You Didn’t Know You Carried

• Paula Behrens | Christian Coach, Pastor, Certified Essential Oil Practitioner • Season 2

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Imagine your hardest spiritual moments not as signs of weak faith but as your body's way of signaling a need for safety before your heart can truly hear God. Our conversation crafts a compassionate path for Christians who love Jesus yet struggle with pray, feel uncomfortable in silence, or procrastinate about quiet rhythms that “should” bring peace. We’ll share a lighthearted sunrise-service story involving some enthusiastically mooing cows and transition into discussing how memory, biology, and Scripture come together in spiritual formation.

We'll explore the difference between true peace and familiar comfort, helping you understand why discomfort doesn’t always signal danger and why comfort isn’t always a confirmation of God’s will. By embracing Christianity's rich use of the senses—such as incense, anointing oil, bread, and wine—we delve into how God uses embodied practices to anchor truth within us. Discover how the limbic system reacts to scent, why a single mindful breath can soften triggering instincts, and how essential oils and aromatherapy can support emotional release without revisiting trauma. This isn’t bypassing Scripture; it’s engaging with how God designed us to rest in Him.

We’ll also touch on the Greek word, anamnesis (ἀνάμνησις)—an active, identity-shaping remembrance in Christianity. Far from simple nostalgia, it's an embodied way to let Christ’s life, death, and Resurrection reshape our narratives. When we pair aroma with the Word and prayer, our nervous system starts associating God’s presence with safety, transforming Scripture from feeling like pressure to bringing peace. This shift can change how we perceive our quiet time, turning it into a place of calm rather than stress and making prayer readily accessible.

For those ready to breathe and to let God reinterpret what your body remembers, this conversation is especially for you. Subscribe, share with a friend in need of biblical encouragement, and leave a review to help others find this show. If guided help is what you seek, consider exploring a Faith Coaching session for a customized rhythm of peace and spiritual growth.

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Paula Behrens:

Something shifts the moment you realize this truth. Your reactions are not random, and your spiritual struggles are not a lack of faith. They are often echoes, echoes of moments when your heart learned how to survive, how to stay safe, how to seek comfort, and how to avoid pain. I didn't realize my comfort and discomfort stem from my past experiences as much as they do, and chances are you're recognizing yourself in that sentence right now. Okay, stay with me until the end because I'm going to share how you can personally plug into a Christ-centered one-on-one experience designed to help you learn to rest in God's presence with greater confidence and peace. But first, funny story.

Paula Behrens:

During my early days as a pastor, I found myself appointed to a quaint little church in Chappell Hill, Texas, a place where the fields of bluebonnets stretched wide and the charm ran deep. We had planned a beautiful sunrise service, believing that watching the dark night give way to dawn would be a perfect backdrop to celebrate our Risen Lord. As the first streaks of light began to paint the sky, we started to sing one of our beloved Easter hymns. Now I must tell you, our voices carried all the passion of Good Friday and the anticipation of Easter morning. We sang with conviction, our hearts lifted high, especially when we began singing, Up from the grave he arose. But little did we know that our congregation was about to expand. Right on que, off in the neighboring pasture, the cows began lowing and making their way to the fence, where they joined us in making a joyful noise into the Lord. Watching the cows moo along with our singing was a reminder that a longing to worship really does extend across all of God's good creation, whether two-legged or four.

Paula Behrens:

Are you finding it challenging to maintain your spiritual practices or yearning for a more peaceful, God-aligned day? I'm Paula, and I've been there too. Balancing spiritual habits with a busy life can be difficult. I longed for a deeper connection with God but struggled with consistency. Then I found the perfect approach. If you seek simple ways to deepen your connection with God, this podcast is for you. Please take a moment to follow the show, leave a review, and share with your friends who need a little biblical encouragement today.

Paula Behrens:

Hey friend, I know how exhausting it can be to chase after a devotional routine that's just not working for you, constantly restarting with good intentions while fighting through distractions that keep pulling you away from God. I've walked that path myself, that cycle of trying my best but falling short. That's precisely why I created the Aroma of Christ Coaching Hour. It's a sacred space where we work together to develop a peace reset utilizing a complementary essential oil sampler that I'll send to you ahead of our session. This unique approach will bring emotional alignment and clarity to your spiritual journey. Imagine stepping into a rhythm that truly refreshes your soul, anchoring you in God's presence for that lasting sense of calm you've been craving. This is your invitation to make it doable today. Turn your quiet time into a source of thriving faith. Save your seat now for an Aroma of Christ Coaching Hour plus Peace Reset at PaulaBehrens.com /coaching. That's Paula Behrens B E H R E N S .com /coaching (no spaces). It's time to start breathing peace into your walk with Jesus. All right, let's get started. Grab your Bible, dust off your journal, and cozy up to your favorite beverage and let's dive in.

Paula Behrens:

Many Christians are quietly confused by their own reactions. We love Jesus, we trust Scripture, we want to live on purpose in Christ. Yet certain situations still feel heavier than they should. Certain conversations make our chest tighten, certain spiritual practices feel nourishing while others feel exhausting. Certain invitations from God stir excitement while others trigger resistance we can't explain. When this happens, we often assume something is wrong with us spiritually. But what if what's actually happening is that your nervous system is responding to old experiences that have not yet been gently untangled.

Paula Behrens:

God created us as whole beings, body, mind, and spirit. Our faith walk does not float above our biology or our emotional history. It moves through it. Scripture never suggests that transformation ignores the body or bypasses memory. In fact, God repeatedly uses physical reminders, sensory experiences, and embodied practices to anchor His truth in us. From the smell of incense in the temple to anointing oil poured over heads, to bread broken and wine shared in remembrance, God understands the power of the senses to help us remember, heal, and remain present. This is why understanding how past experiences shape comfort or the lack thereof is not a deter from spiritual growth. It is often the doorway into deeper freedom.

Paula Behrens:

Comfort can feel holy. We associate it with peace, rest in God's presence. But sometimes comfort is simply familiarity. It is the emotional environment we learned to survive in, even if it wasn't healthy. Discomfort, on the other hand, can feel like danger, even when God is inviting growth. The body remembers what the mind has long forgotten. It remembers tones of voice, emotional climates, and moments when vulnerability costs too much. Without realizing it, many believers organize their spiritual lives around staying emotionally regulated rather than spiritually responsive. This is where God's kindness meets us in profoundly practical ways.

Paula Behrens:

One of the gentle tools God has placed within creation is aroma. Scent is not just pleasant, it is powerful. Our sense of smell is the only one that's connected directly to the limbic system of the brain, the area that processes emotion, memory, and survival responses. This means aroma can shift awareness more quickly than words alone. God designed it that way. If you want to know which essential oils to use, get in touch with me. I'd be glad to help. The aroma freedom technique, often called AFT, is a specialized form of aromatherapy developed by Dr. Benjamin Perkis, a clinical psychologist. It uses God's natural gift of aromas to help individuals gently navigate old emotional wounds that are still affecting them today. Rather than forcing painful memories to the surface or reliving trauma, AFT supports emotional release while shifting attention away from distressing thoughts, feelings, and memories and towards safety, truth, and peace.

Paula Behrens:

What makes AFT especially meaningful for Christians is its gentleness. Healing does not require emotional overwhelm. Freedom does not require reliving everything you've been through. AFT creates space for the body to release what it has been holding while the mind and spirit remain anchored. It supports a positive and lasting transformation that leads to greater confidence and freedom to step into your God-given potential. As a certified Aroma Freedom Technique practitioner, I want to be very clear about something. Using aroma in this way is not about bypassing God or replacing Scripture. It's about cooperating with the way God designs your body to respond to safety. When the body feels safe, the heart can listen. When the nervous system calms, the soul can receive truth more deeply. This matters profoundly for believers trying to fit faith into busy days. You don't want another heavy spiritual assignment. You want something that meets you where you are, honors your story, and gently leads you forward. Aroma does exactly that.

Paula Behrens:

Imagine beginning your quiet time not by forcing focus, but by inviting calm. A single drop of essential oil inhaled slowly signals to your brain that you are safe. As your body settles, scripture lands differently. Prayer becomes less strained. God's presence feels accessible rather than distant. Over time, those moments begin to retrain your internal responses. Scripture becomes associated with peace instead of pressure. God's voice becomes associated with safety instead of demand. This is not accidental. It is discipleship at the level of the nervous system.

Paula Behrens:

Many Christians carry spiritual wounds they rarely name. They learn to perform faith, they learn to stay composed, they learn to minimize their own needs to keep relationships stable. Those patterns often formed early, long before they had language for them. Years later, they showed up as discomfort with rest, resistance to silence, or anxiety when God invites surrender. AFT offers a way to approach these patterns without shame. It does not ask what's wrong with you. It gently asks, What did you learn? And is it still serving you? That question aligns beautifully with the heart of Scripture. God does not shame us for what we learned in survival. He invites us into something truer. This brings us to a simple Greek word that deepens this conversation and anchors it firmly in biblical truth.

Paula Behrens:

The Greek word anamnesis (ἀνάμνησις), translated in the English as remembrance, goes much deeper than what we would normally think of when we hear that word. It goes far beyond simple mental recall. Anamnesis (ἀνάμνησις) refers to an active, embodied remembering that shapes one's identity and behavior. When Jesus says, do this in remembrance of me, he's not asking his followers to think fondly of the past. He's inviting them to continually let his life, death, and Resurrection redefine their present reality. Anamnesis (ἀνάμνησις) acknowledges that memory forms us. It assumes that what we remember, what we repeatedly bring into awareness, shapes how we live. This is why the Christian life involves intentional remembrance, not because God forgets, but because we do. We forget who He is in moments of stress. We forget what is true when old feelings rise. We forget our identity when discomfort feels familiar. What's powerful is that anamnesis (ἀνάμνησις) does not deny past experiences, it reorders them. It places Christ's faithfulness at the center and allows everything else to find its proper place around him.

Paula Behrens:

When paired with gentle tools like aroma, this kind of remembrance becomes embodied. The body learns a new reference point. The nervous system begins to associate God's presence with safety. Over time, comfort and discomfort lose their old definitions. This is where freedom begins, not by erasing the past, but by allowing God to reinterpret it. When we ignore how past experiences shape our comfort and discomfort, we often misunderstand God's leading. We assume discomfort means danger. We assume comfort means confirmation, but scripture teaches us to test, to discern, and to grow. Jesus often led people into discomfort that resulted in healing. He also confronted comforts that kept people stuck.

Paula Behrens:

The integration of aroma into quiet time and spiritual practice offers a compassionate bridge between theology and lived experience. It allows the body to participate in renewal. It creates space for scripture to settle deeper. It supports emotional release without emotional overwhelm. This matters not just for personal healing, but for community. When we understand our own patterns, we become more patient with others. We recognize that reactions are often rooted in history, not hostility. We learn to walk in grace instead of judgment. The church becomes a place of healing rather than performance. Living on purpose in Christ does not mean living without triggers. It means living with awareness, tools, and trust that God is actively restoring what life has shaped. Each small moment of pause, prayer, and presence adds up. Each time you choose to engage Scripture with gentleness instead of pressure, you are participating in renewal. And this is where I want to personally invite you into something more intentional.

Paula Behrens:

If today's conversation has stirred something within you, if you're realizing that your comfort and discomfort are rooted deeper than you once thought, then an aroma of Christ coaching session may be the next faithful step God is placing before you. Your one-on-one faith coaching call with me includes a guided aroma freedom technique experience along with printable journals and reflective guides to help you continue the work beyond our time together. During our session, you'll learn how to rest in God's presence rather than striving for spiritual control. You'll begin saying goodbye to limiting beliefs that no longer align with God's truth and say hello to Holy Spirit-led confidence and a deep, soul-satisfying peace. You won't leave with vague encouragement. You'll leave with a personalized rhythm for spiritual growth and emotional well-being, one that fits into real life and supports ongoing freedom.

Paula Behrens:

This is not therapy and it's not surface-level coaching either. It is Christ-centered, scripture-rooted, and gently embodied. It creates space for the Holy Spirit to work without pressure, without shame, and without rushing the process. If you're ready to stop letting yesterday quietly dictate today, and you want support that honors your faith, your story, and the way God designed you, I invite you to plug into an Aroma of Christ coaching session with me at PaulaBehrens.com /coaching. That's Paula Behrens B-E-H-R-E-N-S .com /coaching (no spaces). I would be honored to walk alongside you as God brings healing, clarity, and renewed confidence. But before we go any further, I invite you to pray this prayer along with me.

Paula Behrens:

Lord, you see me fully. My past, my present, and the places in me that are still tender. I invite your Holy Spirit to guide my discernment right now. If this coaching hour is a step you are inviting me to take, give me a sense of peace that confirms it. If it is not for this season, give me clarity and patience to wait. I release any pressure to decide quickly. I let go of fear, guilt, or striving. I trust that you lead me gently, one step at a time. Help me honor my heart, my body and my spirit as places where you dwell. I choose to follow your timing, your wisdom, and your peace. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. Okay, friend, remember that small steps add up, one breath, one scripture, one moment of safety in God's presence. That is how freedom unfolds.

Paula Behrens:

Thank you for tuning in today. And remember, just like setting biblical boundaries, it's okay to say no to things that don't serve you well, like that third piece of cake at the church potluck. If you were blessed by this episode, be sure to share it with a friend and leave a review so that we can reach even more listeners like you. Check the show notes for all the links. Join us next week as we continue to discover how to live on purpose in Christ. Until then, keep leaning into Him and walking in His Wisdom. See you next time.

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Paula Behrens

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