Some may wonder whether their ministry opportunities have ended once their marriage has ended. God is so gracious as to never waste our pain. He uses what we’ve been through to help us grow, change, and sometimes better help others who are walking through similar struggles. Our stories, both the good and bad, are for his glory!
Throughout scripture, we repeatedly see God use imperfect people with complicated pasts. For example, King David, who was known as a man after God’s own heart, had many wives, committed adultery, murdered to cover his sin, and more! Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ (Romans 8:38). Redemption is a recurring theme throughout scripture, and God is still at work today!
Key Scriptures
- Joel 2:25
“I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten—the great locust and the young locust, the other locusts and the locust swarm— my great army that I sent among you.” - John 4:39-42
Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words, many more became believers. They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”
Application
Painful chapters in our stories do not disqualify us from doing future work in God’s kingdom. God never wastes our pain. He often uses our healed wounds to minister to others. Divorce is a painful reality in our fallen and chaotic world, but it is not the final word in a believer’s story! Oftentimes, divorce is the best path forward to end a really harmful pattern of sin from continuing. Scripture never minimizes the seriousness of a broken relationship, but it repeatedly emphasizes God’s mercy, grace, and restoration!
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Igor Alecsander
Amanda Idleman
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