The freedom of forgiveness

Bear with each other and 

forgive one another 

if any of you has a grievance against someone. 

Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

Colossians 3:13 NIV

Do you see a similarity between all of this week's Bible verses? Forgive as God forgives you. We all want to be forgiven, but sometimes, when it comes time for us to forgive someone, we struggle with it. After my first husband passed away, I felt like it was necessary to forgive him for the many ways he wronged me, mostly for the hurtful things he said. I had a really hard time with it and told myself that he never, ever apologized; he didn't ask for my forgiveness so, therefore, I didn't have to forgive him. Yet I spent a lot of time (and money) in therapy because of it. I realized that the only way to be free from him was to forgive him, wholeheartedly. I wrote him a letter and poured out my heart. It cleansed me and allowed me to move on. Now I'm able to look back on our 25 years together and remember the good times. The bad stuff is no longer overshadowing the past and I feel so much more at peace now. Not forgiving someone, whether they ask for forgiveness or not, can darken one's heart. Don't let that happen. Forgive, and then forget. It will free you.

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Please join me this week in praying for someone who needs to forgive another.
I'll post daily reminders on:
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