The Hard Work of Forgiveness
We all hear that forgiveness is healing. That we heal ourselves from forgiving others and that it’s a gift when forgiveness is offered to us. From a biblical sense this is precisely what we are taught as Christian’s, we should forgive the same way Christ forgave us. Is the inability to forgive lack of faith or belief? I do believe that healing comes from forgiveness , but there is a real struggle in the midst of this action. Sometimes we can’t forget.
Sometimes, forgiveness doesn’t seem fair or warranted. The process of forgiveness can be arduous and painful or easy and light. There’s a lot that is involved in forgiveness, and your faith in Christ will play a HUGE role in it. This is what we’re going to talk about today >>> the mess of forgiveness.
There is nothing more stressing and difficult to navigate through than the emotions of our hearts. At times, those emotions can be completely out of control from our perspective. And that’s why at times, forgiving is an incredible internal struggle.
Forgiveness broke my family and in this episode, I dive into that hurt, & how we’ve learned to cope with this circumstance that has forever shaped each of us.
Forgiving oneself can sometimes feel impossible, and can be the hardest to give. Shame, and guilt can destroy anyone. Forgiving ourselves, is taking care of ourselves in a way that helps us for our present and for our future. But The Enemy will make our minds turn against who we are, and who we know we are in Christ. It’s easy to go dark, and can be very hard to stay in the light. But that’s where forgiveness takes us, back to the light. Back to Christ.
There is amazing research that we discuss in this episode. Science is now validating the teachings the Bible has always given about the importance of our thoughts.
Forgiveness does not make excuses for someone’s behavior. By its nature, forgiving acknowledges wrongdoing, and, at the same time, you choose to show grace and mercy. Indeed, forgiveness doesn’t mean forgetting, condoning, or excusing whatever happened. Forgiveness acknowledges the pain and then allows you to release the bitterness and burden.
Forgiveness = freedom. Think about that for a moment. What does that mean for you?
Mindfulness Exercise
With this episode, it seemed fitting to end with an exercise that I learned from Professor Ronald Siegal of Harvard Medical School , to help handle the emotions and feelings of forgiveness and hurts.
This exercise is aptly called the Soften Soothe, Allow Method, listen to this episode to practice this highly effective exercise that will give you the mindset to walk through deep hurts and quite possibly get you to the point of forgiveness.
This exercise gives you the focus to change your thoughts and replace them with positive life-giving truths that will help change your mind and activate new pathways for your brain to handle hurts. God gives us minds capable of renewing and healing.
Forgiveness is something we all must face in life, and the choice we make can radically change the rest of our lives, and if we aren’t intentional >>> it can dictate the health of our bodies and heart. How do you want to live? Sometimes, forgiveness is the one thing holding us back. And isn’t it wonderful that Jesus didn’t hold it back from us?
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Anytime you want to listen to the meditative prayers or exercises from our episodes, go to boldpearls.com/meditations to get a link to all of them! They’re free!
Until Next time, “Do Not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind… Romans 12:2, Go live with bold intention, bye for now
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PS – If you’ve been feeling “stuck”, it’s hard to experience joy in the everyday. I created this FREE workbook to help you walk through what’s holding you back, and how to move FORWARD. Grab it here!
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