Forgiveness is such a difficult process that so many people walk away from situations harboring resentments that they end up ignoring rather than truly letting go. In the Lord’s prayer, there are the words, “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us…“{Matthew 6:12} What Jesus was inferring was that we are to ask God to forgive us in the same manner that we forgive others. This goes without saying that if we refuse to offer forgiveness then we essentially are refusing to accept it as well.
Thoughts to Ponder
As you go about your week, consider the people who have been placed in your life throughout the years… anyone who has caused you pain. Do you still hold the hurt in your heart? Do you still catch feelings of anger or bitterness when you think of them, or when someone says their name? Are those memories still vivid in your mind? If so, chances are you haven’t forgiven them. Begin praying for God to deliver you of those feelings… and to help you let go of the pain so that you are able to move forward with the process of forgiveness. Keep in mind that people are not always going to ask for forgiveness – and quite often, you will find that they may not even care whether you’ve forgiven them or not. Many times, your transgressors will deny any wrongdoing. However, your ability to forgive them doesn’t affect their own righteousness. It affects your own. Just because it may have been a while doesn’t mean you’ve let it go… Letting time and distance take their course has nothing to do with the natural process of forgiveness.
Prayer
Father God, please touch my heart and allow me to recognize the negative emotions I’ve let penetrate my spirit in connection to the hurtful relationships of my past. Friends have wronged me, Lord. Associates have sought to harm me. People I trusted with my love have destroyed my trust and now I am looking to You to mend my brokenness and help me to rid myself of the bitterness, anger, and resentment that I have opened my heart to. I’ve ignored myself for so long while inadvertently fostering a spiritual environment that has let those feelings grow and thrive subconsciously. I commit myself today to letting go and giving those things to You, knowing that Your hands can repair me and make me whole. It is my mission to be pleasing unto You and to open myself to forgiveness as I learn to forgive those who have trespassed against me and love them as You have loved me in spite of myself. I pray that You also bless those who have abused or misused me in my life - that You show them the error of their ways just as You convict my spirit and that through You they find salvation. In Jesus’ precious and perfect name, I stand before Your throne in prayer. Amen.
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