Forgiveness Is Essential

I have discovered that to forgive is not always easy. Sometimes, it takes time to forgive someone who has wronged you unjustly. In order for God to forgive us, we must forgive others. This can be a choice that we must make. Even though we make this choice, there will still be the emotional aspect involved. If we will meditate on Scripture regarding forgiveness, and change our thought pattern from negative to positive thoughts this will help. If a person who has wronged us will ask for forgiveness this will help, but that will not always happen. Sometimes, a wrong may have been made unintentional. In these cases, we may need to go prayerfully go to the person and tell them how we feel. We could be listening to Satan who is feeding our mind things that are untrue about the other person.

I read here recently about how holding a rock can hinder us. Imagine holding a rock in your hand tightly. Even though this rock is heavy, yet you carry it around all day. You refuse to let it go. You manage to eat, sleep, go to work while you hold onto this rock. It gets heavier each day that you hold on to it. Your hand may even become sore and then produce some bleeding. You will not let it go! You continue to carry it 24/7. One day, someone suggests that you let it go and see what happens. You do it! The relief was so immense that you cried. You laughed, you smiled, and you realized what a waste of time you had done in carrying around the rock.

This rock is like our pain that we carry around every day. Sometimes, we may not have answers as to why we do it. We just feel so bad, so miserable, and so painful, that we have probably allowed the pain to become a part of our identity. It belongs to us so we live a miserable life of unforgiveness.

God will help us lay down the rocks that are causing us to hold unforgivenss in our lives. It may begin with a conscience choice that we WILL forgive the individual. We then turn them over to God. He will take care of them; we do not need to. As we meditate on Scripture and refuse to allow our thoughts to overwhelm us with all the negative things that transpired, our negative emotions will subside slowly day by day.

Forgiveness is not easy: I will not tell you that. But with the grace of God, we CAN. It is our choice. God tells us in Isaiah 43:18-19: "Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old, Behold I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth. Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the dessert."

We may feel like we are in the dessert, like there is no hope we will ever feel normal again. We may feel like the road we are traveling is dark and hopeless, but God will provide a way. He will travel with us. We are not alone.

When Peter asked God how many times we should forgive someone, God told him 70 times 70. Does that mean 149 times? It means we are to live in a state of forgiveness, and become forgiving people. God will help us learn to let go of many things on an everyday basis. The big things that are the most difficult, he will fight for us. He will protect us; He will be our shield and help us reach forward toward things that are ahead - good things. We can only do this as we forgive others and practice living in a state of being a forgiving person.

I am learning more myself daily about forgiveness and desire that God will help me forgive those who harm not only in the big ways, but the small ways as well. I am still a student who by the grace of God will learn to forgive more easily than I have in the past. By Jeanne McIntosh