Last night three-fifths of my family watched a movie. The movie was not a colorful/happy go-lucky/feel-good film. But at the end of it, I sat there and said, “That was a beautiful movie.” Tim and Holly agreed.
It was about a former British Army officer, who was tormented as a prisoner of war at a Japanese labor camp during WW2, discovers that the man responsible for much of his treatment is still alive and sets out to confront him. (Bio source for “The Railway Man”: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2058107/)
One could possibly predict how the movie was going to end, but the journey was incredible. Spoiler alert…It was a story of torment that turns into forgiveness.
Sound familiar?
My son, Hunter, took this AMAZING picture this summer on his phone. Breathtaking!
As I thought about the movie when it was over, it reminded me how Jesus was tortured and yet is the ultimate provider of forgiveness. He is beautiful!
We read in the bible the accounts of Jesus being tortured. If you’ve seen the movie, “The Passion of Christ”, you may have had to turn your head at how real the reality of God’s Son being beaten for you was. Even after all the agony (ultimate bullying in today’s society) that Jesus went through, He still was able to utter the words, “Father, forgive them. They don’t know what they are doing.”Luke 23:34. His testimony is beautiful!
In Luke 7:36-50 we read the precious story of the sinful woman who poured her alabaster jar of expensive perfume on Jesus’ feet and wept. She may not have been physically tortured (well, then again…) but her mind was in anguish and she was ready for a healing. The ultimate Forgiver, Jesus, said to her in Luke 7:48, “Your sins are forgiven.”The sinful woman was made beautiful!
I search on Soaking up The Son the words forgiveness and forgive to see other entries I’d written about forgiveness. There’s plenty. But I couldn’t help but reread one that forgiveness was given and needed. Even after all this time, it still holds true. And even after all this time, God turned something ugly into something beautiful.
Whatever your form of “torture” may be, aren’t you tired of it? Relinquish it all to God. Feel freedom. Feel beautiful.
I pray God’s abundant love and blessings for y’all.
