Forgiving Is Living

I was upset at God. He knows it, so I don’t need to hide it. God, that is my Mom!

I remember God and I having a serious talk, and Him telling me He knows she is my mother.

Hebrews 12:15- Came to my mind.

“See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”

I can either put my concerns in God’s hands or I can harbor them, dwell on them, and cause myself and others to be miserable.

Un-forgiveness blocks our communication with God.

Forgiveness is one of the toughest things that Christ commands us to do, but we are commanded to do it.

Lastly:

Un-forgiveness will hold us hostage, and in bondage.

Truth be told, you dwell on the event, the person, the situation and you are miserable.

You cannot move ahead.

You cannot think of anything else.

Most likely, the person who has hurt you has moved on and doesn’t give it much thought.

The only one suffering is you!

It is not easy, but God in His grace gives us the power to do it if we give it to Him.

We are able to forgive because God is in charge. It is more than excusing, it is needing God to take charge of it.

It is bigger than you are, more than you can handle in yourself.

Some people spend their whole life miserable because they have allowed someone’s action to put them in bondage.

Today, Jesus wants to set you free from that.

The biggest fear to overcome is taking the first step.

We must do the things we think we cannot do!

Closing

Joseph did not forget.

You meant it to harm me, God intended it for good.

Romans 8:28

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”

Forgiveness is an act of faith!

By forgiving, I am putting it (whatever it is) and trust God with it because He knows best.

Forgiveness is not allowing bitterness to grow and break or hurt our relationship with God.

Forgiveness is not allowing it to take our joy, causing stress and illness.

Illustration

Becky and I like to sit out in the summer.

We enjoy watching all the birds and animals in our yard. Two kinds of birds that fly over get my attention.

One is a hummingbird and one is a vulture.

The vulture looks for rotting meat to eat, because that is what it is looking for. They thrive on that diet. Hummingbirds ignore the smelly dead animals. Instead, they look for the colorful blossoms of flowers.

The vulture lives on what was. They live on the past. They fill themselves with the dead and gone.

Hummingbirds live on what is. They seek new life. They fill themselves with freshness and life.

Each bird finds what it is looking for.

Decide which you want to live in the pits or decide this morning that you want fresh and new.

If you ask God this morning to forgive you, accept His forgiveness.

What others do is not your responsibility.

Don’t let them hold you in bondage.

Clara Barton, the founder of the Red Cross said “I choose to move on”

Why don’t you do the same this morning?

The only person that is worse than a quitter is one that never begins.

God will help us do what we cannot do in ourselves.

The same God that empowered Joseph and Peter can empower you this morning.

Altar call: