Are you letting go?

"Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as Christ God forgave you" Ephesians 4:31-32

I thought I would open up with this passage from the Bible this morning. We live in a world with so much bitterness, rage, anger, slander and malice. Just read the papers or go to any of the online news sites and you'll see countless examples of this.Politicians playing the blame game and world leaders showing their anger towards other leaders and countries. The slander and malice which is evident in today's society is so damaging to us all. People constantly position themselves, their parties or groups to get the upper hand. But all too often this is done at the expense of another human being. With the information age fully in gear, it is quite easy to publish statements that can forever damage, even if not true.

I know what you are thinking, that this is a problem with our politicians and the activists groups, right? Well, ask yourself if you've forwarded any emails recently that might have shed a negative light on another individual. Have you talked negatively about someone else when they were not around to defend themselves? Did you validate the information? Is it true? We need to make sure that we think objectively with every piece of information we are given. If you don't have the time to think objectively now, then put it aside until you do have the time. I have seen far too many items come through my inbox that are damaging to the Christian population. They make us look hateful and judgmental. This does nothing to spread the Word of God to others, it only serves to further separate us.

Forgiveness is the hardest thing we have to do. When someone hurts us in any way, via an action, word or deed, it is difficult to forgive. It is even harder to let it go once we do forgive. However, we must self reflect and look at the things we have done and been forgiven. God has forgiven every sin we do through His Son on the cross. Not just the little sins, but all sins.And God will not say to us when we meet Him "but remember when you did...". Our sins are forgiven and wiped clean.

Holding a grudge and keeping the anger for someone who has wronged you will continue to damage both yourself and the other person. Forgiving and letting go allows us to move forward and not stay locked in the past. Letting go is the hardest part. We sometimes forgive, but do we truly wipe that wrong from the slate, or do we hold in in our back pocket to use later? This is especially tempting with spouses, siblings and between parents and children. Think about how many times we say things like "you always" and  "you never"? When we say these things it means that while we may have forgiven, we have not wiped them from the slate.

I pray that today as you go about your activities, you may think about a wrong committed against you that you have not yet wiped from the slate. Try letting it go, commit to wiping it clean. Just do this for one incident. Forgive, wipe it away, and pray for God's help in keeping from reappearing. See what happens next.

May God bless your day and the upcoming weekend.

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