The Power of Forgiveness: What Do You Do with Your Pain?
Living Free Every Day®
A ministry of LivingFree.org
Scripture
“…Present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” Romans 12:1 ESV
Thoughts for the Day
When we’re wounded—by betrayal, rejection, or neglect—our natural reaction is to recoil or retaliate. But God invites us to do something deeper, more transformational: to dedicate our wounds to Him. To make them sacred.
That doesn’t mean pretending they don’t hurt. It means saying, “Lord, this wound is real. But I give it to You. Use it for Your purpose.” When we do this, our pain can become a platform for His grace, not a prison of bitterness.
Ruth Graham shares how she turned the ache of a “mother wound” into a sacred offering. Rather than letting jealousy and resentment fester, she invited God into the pain and saw how He had already been at work—through surrogates, memories, and even writing a book that honored her mother. Her wound became a witness.
The same was true for her friend Amy, whose heart broke repeatedly over her son’s drug addiction. She learned that forgiveness didn’t start by waiting on him to change—it started with God transforming her own heart. Amy’s wounds became sacred when she stopped focusing on the offense and started asking God to use even the painful parts for His glory.
Consider This . . .
Are there emotional wounds in your life that still sting? Have you buried them, ignored them, or allowed them to infect your heart with resentment?
What would it look like to present those wounds to God—not to be forgotten, but to be transformed?
Could that betrayal or hurt, when placed in God’s hands, become something holy? A story of grace? A testimony of healing?
Ask God to make your wounds sacred—to redeem them for His good purpose.
Prayer
Father, here is my wound. It hurts, and I’ve tried to carry it on my own for too long. But today, I give it to You. Make it sacred. Use it for Your glory and not my resentment. Teach me to see how You’ve already been at work, and give me the courage to forgive—myself and others.
In Jesus’ name . . .
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