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Forgiveness

I’ve been known to hold on to past hurts. I can still name the different people who hurt me years ago, even though they probably don’t remember me at all. 

In elementary school when I told my class I wanted to be an actress, one boy said the closest I would come to being an actress would be playing a stunt dog for Lassie.

I had two choices: let it go or live under the burden that will come from holding onto that hurt. Unforgiveness is an ugly bitterness that festers inside us. And often, when you have hurt and bitterness buried down deep inside you, it consumes you and is ultimately what comes out of your mouth toward others. 

Forgiving people who have hurt you isn’t saying it didn’t happen or that it doesn’t matter or that it’s ok. It also doesn’t mean assuming guilt or shame for something we didn’t do and didn’t cause. Forgiving others is an act of kindness toward yourself so you can heal and move on.

Some women can forgive everyone who ever hurt them, but they struggle with forgiving themselves. That’s not what God intended. If God says our sin is in the bottom of the ocean, we shouldn’t wear it every day like a cloak.

Regardless of the source of your hurt - inflicted on yourself or from others - forgiveness helps us step away from circumstances that weigh us down and step into what God has for us. I refuse to live under the labels spoken over me, and so should you.

I believe you can actually stonewall a future that God has planned for you because you’re so distracted by what is in the past. If you allow unforgiveness to identify who you are, it can easily turn into something that keeps you from moving forward. 

Did I go on to be a famous actress? No. But that’s not what God intended for me. If I’d held onto that hurt and tried to prove him wrong by chasing after an acting career, I might not be leading Changed Women’s Ministries today and seeing women’s lives changed by sharing God’s truth. 

Don’t miss God’s purpose for you because you can’t forgive. Understand that what you’ve done or what was done to you doesn’t define you. Choose to live in freedom, ready for God to reveal His purpose for your life to you.