Healing Past Wounds and Forgiving Present Scars

From: Crosswalk.com

Weekly Overview:

Offering forgiveness to others is one of the most difficult and important aspects of the Christian life. The Bible clearly commands us to forgive others. God longs to fashion us into his likeness that we might model the love we’ve been shown to a world with no concept of mercy. He longs for us to offer grace and forgiveness to the undeserving as we have been offered grace and forgiveness when we were undeserving. May you be filled with courage and boldness to offer forgiveness to those in desperate need of grace. And may God’s love shine through as you enter into your calling as a minister of reconciliation.

Scripture:“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.” >1 Peter 2:24

Devotional:

All of us have experienced trial and pain. All of us are living life wounded and scarred. We learn to deal with our wounds and press forward, but whether we acknowledge it or not, wounds and scars change us. There are no perfect parents. There are no perfect friends. There are no perfect siblings or spouses. We live in an imperfect world with imperfect humans. We lash out and hurt others because we are broken and in need of healing.

One of the most critical spiritual exercises we can undergo is allowing God to heal our past wounds and guide us to a lifestyle of forgiving present scars. Without healing and forgiveness, other people’s mistakes will affect our future. Without the inner working of the Holy Spirit, we will live in continual suffering from the sins of others.

Our God is a God of healing. Psalm 147:3 says, “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” Psalm 103:2-4 says, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy.” >1 Peter 2:24 says, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.” Your heavenly Father longs to speak to the wounded places in your life and heal them with his love.

What past experience, trial, hurtful word, or person is still harmfully affecting your life today? Where do you need the Holy Spirit to come and speak healing over you? Where do you need to cry out to God in anger or frustration over a wound? Opening the wounded places of our hearts is an emotional and difficult process, but until we allow God into the harmful events of our pasts we will never experience true freedom and restoration from them. Until we allow ourselves space to deal with what for some have been harmful and defining moments, we will never experience the entirety of the abundant life available to us.

And as the Lord begins to heal our wounds, we must allow him to guide us to a lifestyle of forgiveness for our present scars. We must forgive those people who hurt us so the scars in our lives become symbols of God’s redeeming love rather than reminders of painful events. James 2:13 says, “Mercy triumphs over judgment.” Show mercy to those who are undeserving of it just as your heavenly Father has shown you mercy. Love your enemies as Jesus did so that you can experience triumph instead of pain, freedom instead of enslavement to negativity, and joy instead of anger. May your heavenly Father be allowed to love you, hold you, and care for the places in your heart that need his healing touch the most.