Day 8, love that heals all wounds

     Louis Zamperini was an Olympic distance runner who set amazing records. Before he could get into his prime for long distance running World War II arrived at the western front and he joined the Army Air Corps. On May 27, 1943 Louis’ plane crashed somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. After nearly 47 days adrift in a life raft, Louis and another airmen were picked up by Japanese sailors and taken to a  POW Camp. Louis was regularly abused by the notorious Mutsuhiro "The Bird" Watanabe. “The Bird” was included in General Douglas MacArthur’s list of the forty most wanted war criminals. 
   From Olympic runner to prisoner, Louis’ life had taken a turn. The Japanese POW camps had a reputation of being the cruelest of conditions. Louis would later be liberated, but when he came home he found himself in another kind of prison. Louis had what we know today is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Nightmares of the notorious Mutsuhito “The Bird” Watanabe would plague his nights. During the day Louis often found himself drinking to soothe himself from his anxiety and depression. 
      One night as Louis sat on the brink of divorce his wife convinced him to attend a Billy Gram crusade. After years of hurting Louis life changed that night.  “Graham went on and spoke of God reaching into the world through miracles and the intangible blessings that give men the strength to outlast their sorrows. “God works miracles one after another,” he said. “… God says, ‘If you suffer, I’ll give you the grace to go forward.’ ” (Hillenbrand 381-382).
     That night Louis stepped on to a path that changed his life. Louis decided that he would keep a deal he had made with God all those years ago while he was adrift at sea, “If you save me I will serve you”. In a single, silent moment, his rage, fear, humiliation, and helplessness, had fallen away. That morning, he believed, he was a new creation. (Hillenbrand 383) After that life-changing experience Louis spent the rest of his life helping others. He spent much of his time volunteering at church and helping counsel at-risk youth. Louis turned years of pain into a catalyst for ministry. 
 
“Now a man was there who had been disabled for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and when he realized that the man had been disabled a long time already, he said to him, “Do you want to become well?” The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up. While I am trying to get into the water, someone else goes down there before me.” Jesus said to him, “Stand up! Pick up your mat and walk.” Immediately the man was healed, and he picked up his mat and started walking. (Now that day was a Sabbath.)” 
John 5:6-9 (Net Bible) 
     
     This man not unlike Louis, disabled through no fault of his own, but Jesus asks if he wants to be healed. Though it seems like a silly question, we have to become an active participant in our own healing. I learned long ago that sometimes people don't want change because it’s too scary or that their situation has become comfortable. When we decide that we have been hurting long enough we can say, “Lord I’m ready”. We can leave behind old ways, old coping skills, and long carried hurt. We can use our own healing to bring healing into the lives of others we encounter along the way. ​
Devotion Questions 

• In what ways have you experienced healing in your life?
• What message can you bring to others?

If you haven't experienced the type of healing in these stories and you're ready, invite God to do transforming work in your life.