Bitterness is like a poison. We must learn to forgive and let go, even if that means the person you disagree, or have been hurt by never knows about the pain they had inflicted in your heart. Forgiveness is utterly everything I do NOT want to do, but God calls me to do it. So how does one do what they do not WANT to do?
Whether or not if this is from experience, or from wise words I might’ve heard from the speakers, friends, or mentors, but to forgive someone does not necessarily mean TRUST must follow immediately. I believe TRUST is something that must be rebuilt with a good solid foundation. Also, trust is an act where both parties (victim/persecutor) must work together. Trust must be earned, unlike forgiveness. Forgiveness is given by grace. Forgiveness is when you have the power to say, “I will choose to love them and not do evil unto those who have shown evil or have personally hurt me.” This means YOU (the victim), must free yourself from repaying evil with evil. Just chew on that for a little bit.
So what now? As I write out my thoughts and the burdens in my heart, I am finding that this is going to be a re-occuring message I must review over and over again because no matter what, there will be people who will hurt, destroy, or even crush your spirit. The real challenge is whether or not you will learn to forgive. And if the person is aware of the damaged they have caused, are you willing to rebuild the trust that was broken with them?
It is easy to watch a building fall, but it is difficult to clean up the mess. Depending on the situation, you might just need to clean up the damages and move on, or build a solid foundation all over again and start building it back up.
Learning this lesson has taught me this: The more you forgive others does not mean it will be easier. The more I forgive the more I must give up my pride and learn to love with Christ’s eyes.
So stay strong broken people and don’t give up on forgiveness!
