I’m Troubled: Devotions From Time of Graceنموونە

I feel so wounded

Every day brings its own disappointments and frustrations: car trouble, an argument with your spouse, a disagreeable boss, and a nagging headache. But those are just little nicks. Life’s heaviest burdens come from the devastating blows whose hurt stays with us for decades: a father who told us we were stupid and would never amount to anything, a perfectionist mother who could never say “good job,” humiliations from bullies, betrayal by a best friend, a felony record whose dark cloud never goes away.

In Christ, the healing from those deep wounds begins right now. Through faith in Christ, you receive good news that you have great value to the Son of God himself, that your own moral failings are forgiven, and that you will be given daily strength to survive and overcome. Through Christ, you will grow in your own ability to forgive those who have wounded you, and in that way, those open wounds can turn into scars. The memory is still there, but the pain is diminished.

The ultimate relief will come in heaven. After the spiritual warfare and conflict of this life, you will be invited into the Paradise of the blessed, even better than the Garden of Eden, where you will experience complete wholeness for the first time ever. “On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations” (Revelation 22:2).

They’re for the healing of you.