You’re Only Hurting You

“Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.” - Proverbs 10:12 
 
Are you struggling to forgive? We have talked over the last couple of days about forgiveness. If you are a believer who has spent any serious amount of time in the Word, you already know what the Bible says about forgiveness.  

You say, “But pastor, you don’t know what they did to me.” You are right, I don’t. And you know what? I agree with you. They are NOT blameless. I’ll even go a step further to say they don’t deserve your forgiveness. That’s right, they don’t deserve it.
 
But you know what? When you fail to forgive...you’re only hurting yourself.  

Most of the time, the person isn’t even waiting for you to forgive them. Now, this is not always the case. Sometimes people are deeply hurt by what they did and feel the need for your forgiveness. But in many cases, they don’t think twice about what they have done. They just continue on with their lives as if nothing ever happened.
 
And here you are, continuing to think about it. You are allowing it to get your blood boiling and raise your emotions. You still can’t get over what they did to you. And yet, they are somewhere relaxing, watching TV, not giving it a second thought.

You shouldn’t forgive them because they deserve it. They don’t. But you should forgive because your Father in heaven has forgiven you. And as a result, He wants you to forgive those who wrong you. Proverbs 10:12 says, “Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.”
 
The Lord has called us to forgive. So when we don’t, we are sinning against God. That is why we can’t have peace as long as we have an unforgiving heart. Because God never intended for us to go through life carrying that hate and unforgiveness.  

Today is your day to forgive. Not for them. Not because they deserve it (they don’t). But for YOU because YOU NEED IT. Let it go. Forgive them, and allow God to restore peace in your life today!