Declutter Now! 30 Day DevotionalMostra

Finding Forgiveness

Forgiveness is often thought of as something done for another person. When you pardon someone, you basically let them off the hook for an offense. Actually, our take on it flips the table a bit. We propose that forgiveness is something you do for yourself and for God. In our book, the offender has less to do with the equation than one might initially suspect.

Holding on to grudges, anger, resentment, and hurt is a breeding ground for a miserable life. If someone already offended you once, why give them a free pass to do it again and again and again. It just doesn’t make sense.

Offering someone forgiveness doesn’t suggest what they did wasn’t wrong. It doesn’t imply their actions were justified or acceptable. What is does, instead, is allow you to free yourself from the bondage of the negative feelings that have permeated your soul. It frees YOU to be healthier, lighter, and more joyful.

Forgiveness is also an act of obedience. God doesn’t forgive us because we deserve it. Hardly. He does so because he loves us and knows that in our humanness, we will sin. Repeatedly. And God asks us to extend the same to our offender. He promises we will be blessed for our submission to his will.

Forgiveness doesn’t come easy, but when you take out the often heart wrenching emotions attached to the incident and focus on the logical and Godly components, it just makes sense. You’ll be so much better off for it!

What will you declutter? Bondage to negative feelings, years of heartache and distress, disobedience to God, and missing out on blessings.