Mindful Monday's: Got Forgiveness?

Matthew 6:9-15 "This, then, is how you should pray: " 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. ' For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."

It's funny, I have read that prayer so many times throughout my life as a Christian. Not one time, do I recall reading vs 14 or 15! How convenient. I recall the parts where I'm asking God to forgive me of this or that and deliver me from temptation and the evil one....but the part about ME doing the forgiving, completely managed to skim right over that one!

Mark 11:25 "And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins. "

Did you catch that? Forgive, so that the Father may forgive you! Forgive, or your Father in Heaven will not forgive your sins. That's POWERFUL! Did you hear it??

I heard it, LOUD AND CLEAR...this past Sunday at church. We had a special speaker on Sunday morning. Her Word from the Lord was shooting right at me....like lightening cutting through a tree. OUCH! What did you just say, Lord? I'M the one who needs to forgive? It's hindering MY growth? It could be blocking MY prayers?

Have you ever been ambushed by someone's words, or by their actions toward you? So harshly, it feels as if they cut you with a knife verbally? Well, I have. A couple of times in the past year. It hurts. It's not fun. The worst part is when you really feel that you are owed an apology....and you wait & wait & wait....and it never comes. People move on as if it never happened. All the while, you are still hurting.

Guess what? You can claim VICTORY over that pain. When you are expecting an apology and you want the relationship to be right again. When you want the pain to go away & the hurt to be erased. You can have joy again! Sometimes we just need to forgive...for OURSELVES!!! We need to forgive the person that we feel has wronged us so that WE can move on. I realized this week that I will most likely never get what I think I deserve from the person who I feel wronged me. But, you know what? It's ok! Why? Because I can get EVERYTHING I need and MORE from the ONE Who created me! I can ask the Lord to help me forgive that person and He will! He will not only help me to do that, but He will give me VICTORY over the hurt & pain!


Corrie Ten Boom, a Christian woman who survived a Nazi concentration camp during the Holocaust, said, "Forgiveness is to set a prisoner free, and to realize the prisoner was you."

When you have been hurt by someone's words or actions....try forgiveness! After all, the Lord has forgiven us ... shouldn't we do the same for others? Our joy is being held captive when we choose not to forgive. Release the joy....the key is forgiveness.

I choose to forgive....what about you?