Luke 6:37c
I mentioned my prayer journal last week. It has a page for various topics, like thanksgiving and the needs of others. I pray through the pages each morning while I eat breakfast, alone and quiet.
Today I will tell you about the page "Forgiveness."
This is an area that can be a difficult for me. Do you struggle to forgive someone who hurts you ~
. criticism from a close friend
. being left out
. having money taken from you
. being misunderstood
I've experienced each of these in the last year.
So I put the names of the people involved on my forgiveness page. Each day I asked the Lord to forgive them. I prayed that prayer day after day, week after week. I was hoping the Lord would change them, let's be honest.
One day when I began to pray, I saw my own sins in the situation: resentment, unforgiveness. I realized then it wasn't enough for God to forgive them. I needed His forgiveness, too.
When that became clear to me, I listed my own sins in the situation and asked God to forgive me. When I did that, healing came to my heart. And isn't that worth more than anything?!
Have a wonderful Sunday, dear friends.
Hugs ~ Mary
You are so right, Mary. I think I have forgiven someone, and years later, something will bring back that pain. Then I have to ask God to help me again. The devil never stops working on us, but thankfully, neither does God.
ReplyDeleteMary - beautiful post. We so have to search our own hearts first, don't we? Then the acts that hurt us so much don't seem so significant.
ReplyDeleteJudy
Absolutely:) What a wonderful prayer, forgiveness! Have a blessed day dear Mary, HUGS!
ReplyDeleteWonderful post! Yes when we forgive others it is for ourselves. God taught me that long ago....hard to always follow but I know it to be true!
ReplyDeletehugs, Linda
Whenever I find myself holding a grudge I then ask myself "If you can't forgive then why should Jesus forgive you?"
ReplyDeleteForgiveness truly is a gift you give yourself.
Oh I'm sure your blog has hit us all! Why is it so hard to forgive when we have been forgiven and can look forward to eternal life because of it?
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your blog post.
Linda