Proverbs 17:22A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
Bullied as a kid
Disciplined harshly by his earthly father
laughed at by his older brother
Chased after by the local police
for
petty crimes
After years of preparation and encouragement of his running ability
Louie went to the Olympic games
where he was bunched in by other runners
and
spiked in his ankles
yet
he never gave up and finished the race with bloodied ankles and all
When he enlisted in the service and was assigned to a bombardier
he survived multiple days in a life raft
with two survivors
in
sharp infested waters
shot at by Japanese war planes
until their raft found land
the wrong island
surrounded by gun toting Japanese who
cruelly beat him
and
At the encouragement of a Japanese superior
named Bird
he was beaten to a bloodied pulp
at the slightest indiscretion
yet
Louie never gave up his will to live
through the life of his bombardier partner
he discovered that there was a man
who suffered far worse than he
a man who performed miracles and spoke many truths from the bible
a man that was God's son
who came to reconcile the world
to give hope to everyone
that called upon his name
Jesus gave him the will to live
and
to forgive his captors
to forgive even the Bird who was the cause of most of his grief
God
wants us to live in harmony with those we consider our enemies
What we consider impossible to do as humans
Jesus helps us do the impossible
and help you to forgive past relationships
and
help heal those past sour friendships
that cause bitterness to take root
Louie Zamperini had every right to remain bitter
yet,
through the power of Jesus Christ
he turned to the Cross and laid down his bitterness
his hatred
and gave it all to God
and when the Olympic games came to Japan
he carried the torch
as thousands of Japanese bystanders
cheered him on
Now that is the power of forgiveness!!
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