Forgiveness After the Raft: Louis Zamperini and Matthew 6:14

Some wounds do not end when the fighting does. Louis Zamperini's story, as recorded on Wikipedia and in the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association's account of his life, is a powerful picture of what forgiveness can do.

Zamperini was an American runner who qualified for the 1936 Olympics, then served as a bomber crewman in World War II. In May 1943 his plane crashed into the Pacific. He and two crewmates survived on a raft, one of them dying after 33 days. After 47 days adrift, Zamperini was captured by Japanese forces and held in prisoner-of-war camps until August 1945, where he was beaten and mistreated.

Coming home was not the end of the struggle. He was haunted by nightmares and began drinking heavily. In 1949, at his wife Cynthia's urging, he attended a Billy Graham crusade in Los Angeles. He later said he remembered the prayers he had prayed on the raft and in captivity, and he committed his life to Christ. His nightmares ceased, and he began to forgive the men who had tormented him. He later visited former guards in a Tokyo prison to tell them so.

Key verse (KJV), Matthew 6:14: "For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you."

Prayer point: Lord, help us lay down the grudges we carry and trade them for Your peace.

Over to you:
- Have you ever struggled to forgive someone, and what helped you let go?
- How does your parish or family encourage forgiveness and reconciliation?

Sources: Wikipedia (Louis Zamperini); Billy Graham Evangelistic Association; CBN interview as cited on Wikipedia.
Photo: U.S. Army Air Forces, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons