Forgiveness is a tough one, but essential to the wellbeing of the Believer.
Forgive as God has forgiven you! Forgive your brother or
sister, 70 times 70! Love holds no record of wrong! Forgive, forgive….FORGIVE!!
Jesus is serious about our love walk and commands we forgive
no matter how hennas the infraction. But we often skim over that this forgiveness—includes forgiving ourselves.
Salvation is all about “Forgiveness and Reconciliation.”
Once we come to the realization that we are sinners in great
need of the redeeming power of the Cross and accept Christ as our Savior—we are
forgiven! Forgiven of what? EVERYTHING!
Not only are we forgiven of all poor decisions, poor
choices, and mistakes, but all transgressions against God and others! And God
puts them in the sea of forgetfulness, which translates into—never remembered!
But somehow, this truth is quickly lost. Why? Well, for
starters, we have an enemy who loves to play the tapes of our faults and sin over-and-over
for us and then there are those who relish in dredging up our past.
When I first became serious about Jesus being Lord of my
life (There is a difference between being Savior versus also being Lord.), I
realized I would have to learn how to forgive. I wasn’t happy about this,
because I loved being the martyr of having a mother who was abusive. It had
been my reason (excuse) for years for my bad behavior and foolish choices and
decisions. It was my comfort zone. If I had to forgive and let go,
then who would I blame for all my problems?
Forgiveness meant, no more, “Woe is me,” and “I’m so
misunderstood” and “No one has ever really loved me,” saga. Nope. Forgiveness
doesn’t allow for any of that—and I didn’t like that part of it—at all! Well, not at
first, but once I understood the truth about forgiveness, I was willing to try.
Partly out of obedience but also because there was something in it for me—Freedom!
Learning to forgive someone who beat you down in your spirit
and self-esteem, year-after-year, and having to take a close look at your own poor life changing decisions is not easy. But it is not impossible either.
Anything God commands us to do He provides all that is needed to accomplish it.
It would be great if I had an overnight success story for
you, but I don’t. Forgiveness of old hurts often takes time to work through,
but once we learn to forgive it becomes easier to do.
Now that I am in my 60’s and have walked with the Lord
awhile, I have learned the great value forgiveness holds for us. God’s Word,
reassures me that He forgives me when I ask and keeps no record of it against
me. He also forgives me as I forgive others. And I’ve learned from
experience—the quicker I do it—the better off I am.
I love God! I am trying to live a life that pleases Him and
love Him with all my heart, soul, mind and strength according to my understanding.
But you know what—I still mess up! But I no longer dwell on whatever it is I’ve
done wrong. I forgive myself as my Father in heaven forgives me and I keep on moving
forward.
On this earth—in this body—we are going to make mistakes and
mess up! That’s life! But, we cannot waste time beating ourselves up about it
when God says; “We are forgiven!”
If we do something ten times that is wrong and go to God ten
times to ask His forgiveness He doesn’t say, “Now this is the tenth time, don’t
come back again.” He doesn’t remind us that we did it last month and now here
we are again. No, it’s as if it is the first time.
He holds no record.
Please do not misinterpret what I am talking about here. I’m
not saying that if we practice sin (purpose in our hearts to do wrong) that God
is going to give us a free pass—oh no! I’m not saying you can continue to be
disrespectful to your spouse, yell and cuss at your kids and neighbors without
making change in your life. But you might have to come before God for
disrespecting your husband ten times or more, before you get a handle on bringing your tongue and attitude under the authority of Christ and be submissive
to your husband. And in those times, our enemy will step in and try to condemn
you and attempt to make you feel like a failure and unworthy. Just remember…he
is the father of all lies!
Past mistakes and poor decisions, which have affected not
only us but the lives of others—is a biggie! Everyone is not willing to forgive
or forget the things we have done—including our children. Yes, there are those
who try to keep us hostage in the prison of unforgiveness when God has said, “It
is forgiven and it is forgotten!” You know what sisters, that’s their problem,
not yours.
Forgiveness of others and ourselves is one of the keys we
are given in the Kingdom of God, therefore—be quick to agree with Him—and forgive
not only those who have wronged you, but also yourself!
If you are not sure how to go about forgiving yourself, Biblegateway.com is a great place to
start. Type in “forg” and at least 7
different words drop down in reference to forgiveness—search out some of those
scriptures and begin to meditate on them. Talk to God about it!
Look in the mirror and say, “I love you and I hope one day you forgive me my mistakes!” until you are able to say, "I love you and I forgive you!"
Emotional healing is yours. Don’t pass it up!
Until next week...
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