“I’ll forgive you, but I’ll never forget what you did!” Has anyone ever said that to you? Have you ever said that yourself?
I want to share something with you. If you don’t forget or at least try to forget the wrongs committed against you, isn’t that sort of the same thing as holding on to it. And, if you hold on to those wrongs, isn’t that pretty much the same thing as not forgiving?
I want to share something else with you. Matthew 6:14-15 has this to say:
” 14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, 15 but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
Did you catch that? If you don’t forgive, you won’t be forgiven by God. There is one other thing that I’d like to point out though. If you don’t forgive people for what they do, how can you possibly build a relationship with someone you are harboring a grudge against? It will be a relationship built on a shaky foundation, ready to crumble at any sign of trouble.
Are there any relationships in your life that are suffering or aren’t what they should be because you never really forgave the person? If so, you need to let that person know that you forgive them and don’t hold what they did against them.
Maybe a relative hurt you in the past and now you don’t see them or speak to them because of something they did to you. That has to end.
As Christians, we should reflect Christ’s love. If we are unwilling to forgive and forget, when people look at us, what do you think they see? When people look at you, do you think they Jesus, or do they see someone who can’t get past themselves enough to let things go that really don’t matter in the grand scheme of things?
Forgive, forget, and build some great relationships!
Filed under: Christianity, God, Relationships, Worship, advice, church, church relevance, faith, family, religion | 3 Comments
Tags: Christianity, Christians, church, church relevance, faith, family, God, Relationships, religion
I think that is a wonderful thing to write about. And I do agree to an extent. There are times when you can forgive someone but what they did will never be forgotten…that’s just human nature. The key is to not allow those memories to make you bitter and spiteful but to learn from those incidents and let them lead you in a path to show empathy for someone else who has traveled that same road. That is where the growing comes into play!
Great point lwayswright!
I wasn’t trying to suggest that you would never remember those things.
You just can’t let them cloud your view of a person. Don’t dwell on the memories, that is what is meant by forget about them.
But, if it is one of the first thoughts in your mind when you see or think about the person, you haven’t really forgotten about it. That’s not to say that some things don’t take time to be forgotten.
You are absolutely right in saying that you shouldn’t allow those things to make you bitter and resentful.
Thank you for your insight!