A tremendous book I am still reading, called Finding The Gift In Depression by Changing Your Perspective, by Cornelle du Plessis, explains that not forgiving is like cancer in your soul.  It is deadly, and it SPREADS to every part of your life:

It destroys your personality (mental/emotional) and spirituality, and it causes physical illness.

It destroys your relationships.

It breaks down your confidence.

It saps your creativity.

It causes you to build walls around yourself, and you become isolated.

It is an investment in the past that wastes the energy you should be using to engage fully in where you are right now.

How can you be a soldier for God or help in your church or community when you have no energy because you’re spending it all on past wrongs and pains?

Cornelle du Plessis continues to say that when you don’t forgive, you stay stuck with the effect of someone else’s behavior.  You become their victim in all perpetuity.  In fact, you take over the role of the perpetrator by inflicting the pain over and over again.  This is true every time you think about what happened, often long after they’ve forgotten the event!

We often feel like we are on top: powerful, big and bad, stating, “better not mess with me or else…”  But what price do we really pay?  Real power comes from letting go, being humble and surrendering.  People think that forgiveness exonerates the behavior and allows the other person to get away with anything.  No, it is a special gift that we receive and an investment in ourselves on all levels—mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually. It prepares us for healing.

Colossians 3 verse 13 says, “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone.  Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”  Yes, it’s difficult to let go of the past, but not doing so is troublesome.

Studies have shown that people who harbor anger and resentments are generally more neurotic and less optimistic.  This exposes an individual to feelings of depression, anxiety, and helplessness. Letting go of these feelings contributes to a healthier and happier person.  Thus, the benefits of forgiveness are not for the offender but for the injured.

We have to exercise faith.  If we choose God, he will help us.  A while back, I read a wise quote: “FAITH IT TILL WE FEEL IT.”  Forgiveness is faith in action.  By forgiving others who mess up, we free ourselves to be forgiven when we do the same.

“When you hold resentment toward another, you are bound to that person or condition by an emotional link that is stronger than steel.  Forgiveness is the only way to dissolve that link and get free” — Catherine Ponder.

“Always forgive your enemies- nothing annoys them so much” — Oscar Wilde.

“To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you” — Lewis B. Smedes.

“Resentment is like drinking poison and then hoping it will kill your enemies” — Nelson Mandela.

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“WAIT”
by Russell Kelfer

Desperately, helplessly, longingly, I cried;
Quietly, patiently, lovingly, God replied.
I pled, and I wept for a clue to my fate….
And the Master so gently said, “WAIT”

“Wait? You say wait?” my indignant reply.
“Lord, I need answers, I need to know why!!!!
Is your hand shortened?  Or have you not heard?
By faith, I have asked, and I’m claiming your Word.

“My future and all to which I relate
Hangs in the balance, and you tell me to wait?
I’m needing a ‘Yes,’ a go-ahead sign,
Or even a ‘No’ to which I can resign.

“You promised, dear Lord, that if we believe,
We need but to ask, and we shall receive.
And Lord I’ve been asking, and this is my cry:
I’m weary of asking!! I need a reply.”

Then quietly, softly, I learned of my fate,
As my Master replied again, “WAIT”.
So, I slumped in my chair, defeated and taut,
And grumbled to God, “So, I’m waiting for what?”

He seemed then to kneel, and his eyes met with mine…
And he tenderly said, “I could give you a sign.
I could shake the heavens and darken the sun.
I could raise the dead and cause mountains to run
I could give you all you seek and pleased you would be
You’d have what you want, but you wouldn’t know Me
You’d not know the depth of my love for each saint
You’d not know the power that I give to the faint
You’d not learn to see through clouds of despair;
You’d not learn to trust just by knowing I’m there.
You’d not know the joy of resting in Me
When darkness and silence are all you can see

You’d never experience the fullness of love
When the peace of My spirit descends like a dove.
You would know that I give, and I save, for a start,
But you’d not know the depth of the beat of My heart.”

“The glow of my comfort late into the night,
The faith that I give when you walk without sight.
The depth that’s beyond getting just what you ask
From an infinite God who makes what you have last”.

“You’d never know, should your pain quickly flee,
What it means that My grace is sufficient for thee.
Yes, your dearest dreams overnight would come true,
But, Oh, the loss, if you missed what I’m doing in you”

“So, be silent, my child, and in time you will see
That the greatest of gifts is to truly know me
And though oft My answers seem terribly late,
My most precious answer of all is still

WAIT.”

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Matthew 14 vs. 24-31

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Spiritual Supplement-
When trouble comes our way, we are quick to ask God to get us out of a bad situation. We forget that God never promised us that we would not endure pain or have any hardships. Instead, he promised that he would always be there giving us the strength we need to face those challenges. Remember when we go through rough roads, we practice growth and maturity. If there were no harsh roads to walk or battles to fight, then there would be no room for growth. What God does promise is that when we call on him in difficult times, he is there to answer our call, never leaving us alone with our battles and hardships. God promises that he will always be standing beside us, guiding and giving us the necessary tools for battle, all we must do is ASK. Sometimes what your going through is a test of faith by learning how to come to him, we can trust that he will take care of it. Always remember the battle is not yours it’s the Lord.

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