Quirk: A Teens Guide

Forgiveness

Forgiveness is letting go of whatever is, knowing God has let go of 'yours'.

If there's someone in the Bible who knew all about forgiveness, it was Jesus. His close friends and followers all abandoned him when he needed them. His friend Judas betrayed him which led to his death. His best friend Peter, whom he loved and trusted, denied knowing him.

If you've had a friend snitch on you or not stand up for you, then you know exactly how Jesus felt.

But even though his friends turned their backs on him, even though he was beaten, humiliated, and nailed to a cross, some of his last words were about forgiveness.

"Father, forgive them for they know not what they do."

In the middle of the horrible events of the last days and hours of his life, he forgave everyone who hurt him and asked God to forgive them.

The exact number of times you forgive someone isn't what's important. What matters is the effort you make to forgive and the sincerity behind it.

Forgive from your heart.

"THOU SHALT  NOT AVENGE OR BEAR ANY GRUDGE BUT THOU SHALT LOVE THY NEIGHBOUR AS THYSELF."

Forgiving someone doesn't mean you are OK with what they did but when you spend time focusing on what people have done to hurt you, you give them too much power over you. You allow them to rob you of your joy.
The truth is, most often people don't know they've hurt you and some people are so hurt themselves that they don't know how to relate to others without being hurtful.

There are a few things you can try when you find yourself needing to forgive someone.

1*Stop, take a deep breath and pray. In your prayers, ask God for the courage to forgive.

We've heard the Lord's Prayer. There's a part that talks about forgiveness; "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us."
This means God forgives us for anything we do as long as we forgive others too.

2*As soon as you can, tell the person (face-to-face; usually the best), that they've hurt you and calmly explain why.

No matter how the conversation goes, whether the person forgives you or not, you'll find inner freedom because you forgave.

Forgiveness is not the same as acting as if nothing happened.

Forgiveness doesn't mean you're weak, it doesn't mean people can do whatever they want to you. It means you are strong enough to have the courage to let go of the anger you feel. 

Forgiveness sets you free from carrying around the burden of resentment. Resentment weighs you down. When you forgive someone it's as if you just stopped carrying around a backpack of heavy books. IT'S A RELIEF!

When someone hurts you, it's normal to feel pain. Acknowledge the feeling. It's completely up to you whether or not you continue in a relationship with someone who has hurt you. Just know that the best thing to do is LET GO!

I hope this message helps in one way or the other. I pray that we all find the courage to forgive others for the pain they've caused us. Thank you and God bless you for reading...

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