Deep Wounds, Deep Healing (Book Review)

Deep Wounds, Deep Healing
By Charles H. Kraft

Some thoughts on experience of reading the book:

When I chance upon the book, there was immediately interest. I was actually only looking for a book that can help me, has an element of psychology (dealing with the deeper things in the human mind and behavior). But wasn’t sure about exploring inner healing cos I always thought that was only needed in far way more serious cases. However, still picked up the book to browse, skimming through the book I saw relevance and how I should be dealing with the negativities that I was struggling with during that time of my life. I knew the book would be useful but I still had doubts because the author wasn’t a well known one. Then I remembered the reason why am I looking at who the author is judging whether the book is good. And that is because they are more credible due to the wider readership, so I started asking myself , whether I’m mature enough to discern whether the text will be biblical and whether the book has strong biblical supports for the author’s claims. Finally decided to pick up the book after much confirmation from God.
Reading the book had been an exciting journey. It brought me to dig out many things within my heart that has been there for really long. Some really hurt to be dug out, but the book was encouraging enough to spur me on with the end goal I have in mind, to truly gain the complete freedom that God wants me to have. The book was also consciously reminding readers to do it (be it ministering to somebody else or desiring healing in one’s own self) together/ in partnership with God and to recognise what are God’s work and what are the things I have made it. I’m really blessed by the experience I’ve had in fellowshipping with God while reading the book. I gain greater self awareness and also God awareness and I know that God has healed me so that I can heal. Thus, I do hope that in some way, you too can be blessed by this review =)


Deep Wounds, Deep Healing is generally a book on inner healing.
• Good for those who is currently/wish to be ministering to those who have inner wounds affecting their lives and also those who are seeking help with their own inner wounds. This is not a self-help book though =)
• It provides understanding of what inner wounds are, how they come about, how it affects our lives and what it can lead to and how one should manage and partner with God to heal these wounds.
• Provides detailed and precise guidelines we can follow to minister healing that comes from God to suffering people.

1. Inner healing
• Dealing with the inner garbage within our lives which everyone has and should not be ignored. This is because it usually involves sin (usually anger and unforgiveness) and allows devils to have some control over us.
• It is all about receiving from God. Both the one receiving inner healing as well as the one ministering.
• It is about restoring our freedom given to us by God. Matt.11:28-30. By submitting our emotions to God. Giving God our rights to remain angry.

2. Damaged self-image of those hurting inside
• They are aware of sin, so don’t need to remind them.
• In the eyes of God, they are victims but they may condemn themselves for falling short of who God wants them to be.
• Help them by bringing them to see God being compassionate towards them and not help them see their sin because they already know. And also convicting of sin is the job of the Holy Spirit, not us. We are to minister love and bringing them to see restoration.
• Deepening relationship with God is what deep-level healing importantly brings about.

3. Largely affected by our responses to experiences
• The damage received by a person from a traumatic experience depends on how bad the situation had been and also how creative the person is.
• So don’t underestimate the damage just because the experience may not seem that bad.

4. Inner wounds can create a split personality
• A separate personality is developed due to a trauma. It may be deep sadness that create a personality that is dissociated from the person’s main personality
• In such cases, we need to allow the main self and the dissociated self to join back together.
• It is important that if the dissociated self existed before the person receives Christ, the dissociated self must be brought to receive Jesus first.

5. This book also talk about dealing with demons (due to our inner wounds, demons can reside within us and gain certain control over us even though the Holy Spirit lives in us)
• Demonization is not demon possession. Possession gives the connotation of full control but it is never the case that the demon can have full control over us; They can have some but not full control. Demons can only harm the areas that we are wounded and have sins.
• Therefore, the casting out of demon is usually not the crucial step. It is the healing of the internal garbage that truly stops the demon from coming back.
• Demons can be cast out easily in Jesus’ Name, but their presence in the person’s life is not the main problem, the main problem is the internal garbage which makes it possible for demons to reside.

Would like to end off with a sentence written in the book: Inner healing enables us to cherish even the worse moments on our lives. I certainly hope I’ll be able to do so, so it’s not the end of me receiving inner healing now that I have finished reading the book. I’m constantly checking for any damaged attitude towards myself, towards people and also towards God. I believe God wants to restore and heal me more =)