Forgiveness
Courtesy Brenda Starr, Flickr
Forgiveness is like a magic potion for believers. And conversely, unforgiveness will poison your heart, mind, soul and strength until you doubt whether you actually are one of God’s children, whether you are saved and whether God is really who He says He is.
He tells us why in scripture, in the traditional NIV, Matthew 6:12-16
“Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.“
Wow, now listen to The Message: “In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can’t get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God’s part.“
It’s all right there and these are Jesus’ words! That’s heavy. I don’t know about you, but I know a whole lotta believers walking around with unforgiveness in their hearts. I have been one of those people until I really looked into this connection through reading Trading Faces and The Language of Forgiveness by Quinn Schipper. Not that I hadn’t read these verses plenty of times, but you see, sometimes, it just doesn’t sink in.
Courtesy of Nomanson
Many times the enemy of Christ will use lies tied to unforgiveness to trap believers in their minds. There are parts of you that sometimes you don’t even realize. Parts that sunk away when the first boy said something ugly to you. For whatever reason, I heard the lie that no one could love me, basically, that I’m unlovable. This is a horrible lie from the enemy. I might have heard it from someone or this part of me deduced it from experience, but nevertheless, it had become a part of me. Until I heard this lie, I thought that I must be doing something wrong, that God didn’t really love me because He wasn’t answering my heartfelt prayers and I was still hurting.
When this lie came to light, I was able to combat this lie with scripture, mainly, the Psalms, especially, Psalm 16:5-8, ”LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. I will praise the LORD, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me. I have set the LORD always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.” For me, this has God’s love all over it. I even got this scripture reference tattooed on my wrist. I need to know this love through and through. I do know this love through and through.
Now that I’ve combatted the lie, who do I need to forgive? Where did I hear this lie? Or rather, who might’ve said something or done something so that I bought into this lie? Honestly, I can’t remember because once I confront the lie and forgive, I can really let it go. But I can guess it was probably some boy. So I say, out loud, although I don’t think you have to speak it out loud. I say aloud, “Lord, I forgive _____ for making me feel unlovable and I forgive myself for acting on my feelings of being unlovable.” Sometimes, I have to forgive God. No doubt that seems silly to some people, but I know a whole lotta people mad at God.
It’s not a checklist, but it really is important to rid yourself of all unforgiveness. Personally, I tend to hold a grudge; I know this about myself. So I’ve had many such sessions with myself regarding forgiving people from the past. Sometimes, I talk it over with trusted friends. In talking, the lie usually comes out of my mouth and who I need to forgive. I really work hard not to hold a grudge and recognize any unforgiveness more easily.
A New Path, Courtesy Jurvetson
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.
Loading...