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The Struggle to Forgive
Now Showing: Week 1 (September 1st-7th) | Week 2 (September 8th-14th) | Week 3 (September 16th-21st) | Week 4 (September 22nd-Month End)
September 30th: Release - He made a way for us through His son, Jesus Christ, and I challenge you to release those you are holding in your prison of reproach. While you are it, release yourself. Assignment: There are others who know, whether you know it, believe it, care about it \endash or not. Think of the legacy you are leaving by continuing to hold on. Release it and yourself to God once and for all. The change in your life will be a true testament to the love and power of God. September 29th: Renewal - God is the only one I know who can take your mistakes and errors and do something creative with them to bring you consolation and conviction and push you towards your destiny. Assignment: Yes you can! Write down a new discovery you made about yourself in the past 30 days that gives you strength and courage to move in a new direction. September 28th: Revisit - So the challenge is to examine your life in light of forgiveness and come to know the authentic power of God to release you from your wrong. Assignment: Love is meant to be shared. Read Luke 23:33-34 and with thanksgiving that love extends to you beyond Calvary, be free to go to someone you regularly talk to and share your testimony about the love of God towards you. September 27th: Receive - Old folks used to say it like this: \ldblquote He's been better to me than I've been to myself.\rdblquote Assignment: Contact a family member today and tell him/her something they don't know about you and the mercy God has shown towards you, so that they too may believe and give or receive the freedom through God's forgiveness.
September 26th: Remember - But I suspect that some people are shouting because they have been forgiven and know that they do not deserve it. Assignment: Write a one line prayer thanking God for showing mercy and answering your prayer for forgiveness. Then find somewhere to give a 30 second praise!
September 25th: Reliable - You're not vindictive because you have learned to take those feelings and put them in the hands of God. Assignment: Today, share with someone your testimony about what you have learned through a situation that taught you how to rely on God to be rid of the weight of unforgiveness by turning yourself and hurt-full people and situations over to God to handle.
September 24th: Rejoice Again! - Because you are so grateful you don't have energy for a revengeful spirit. Assignment: Think again on the way(s) God interceded in your vengeful thoughts and action(s). Then give God greater praise and thanks for mercy and protection! Have a praise party all by yourself! \i\f2\fs24
September 23rd: Reflect - When you think about what God could have done to you and how God spared you and had mercy on you, your vengeful thoughts dissipate. Assignment: Reflect on the possible consequences if God had not interceded in vengeful action(s) you contemplated, attempted and failed, and/or even went through with. Give God praise and thanks for mercy and protection.
September 22nd: Repent - But God's grace reverses revenge because as the Spirit of God grows in you and moves in you, it takes the revenge out of you. The more Spirit comes into you, the more it pushes out the notion of revenge. Assignment: Make room today to be filled more with the Spirit of God, by repenting of any old or deep seated unforgiveness that you may not be aware resides in you. The Spirit knows and will intercede for you through your prayer.
Week 3 September 21st: Reverse - Have you ever had someone hurt you but you couldn't figure out why? Assignment: Pray today for someone who has hurt you for no apparent reason, to forgive them and ask God to move in their situation that brought the hurt out of them to you.
September 20th: Recruit - Have you ever had someone do something to you and you immediately began plotting how to get them back? Assignment: Do a role reversal. Today, listen for someone who may share a desire to get revenge for something someone did to them. Then be a witness and bring them closer on the Lord's side by sharing with them the urgent importance of their letting go and giving the situation to the Lord to handle
September 19th: Drift - He forgives us for so much that it all cannot be named. But here is the good news. God’s forgiveness is in abundance. Assignment: Read and meditate on 1 John 1:9; then begin to drift in the flow of the Spirit that carries you to a new place in God and into harmony with others by repeating (not less than 10 times) “He is faithful and just to forgive – I am forgiven and I forgive; He is faithful and just to forgive – I am forgiven and I forgive; He is faithful and just to forgive – I am forgiven and I forgive….”
September 18th: Deluge - God never runs short when it comes to forgiveness; after all, He forgives us for everything. Assignment: Think of one more thing that you never talk about and ask God to forgive you. Now believe that it’s done – in Jesus’ name!
September 17th: Deliverance - Once your emotions have caught up with your forgiveness, you then have to realize that God’s forgiveness is overwhelming and abundant. Assignment: Sometimes we can “feel” forgiveness. Conduct a “spot check” of your faith by saying the name of someone you recently have forgiven-- to see if there is any difference in how your body responds – is there no (or less) tension, crying, lip-biting, tantrum, or trembling…. Now give God praise for your deliverance for the bondage of unforgiveness!
September 16th: Dream - But when you focus on what’s ahead of you instead of getting caught up in the minutia of revenge, you end up with what’s best for you. But it all starts with a decision. Assignment: Read Jeremiah 29:11 and ask God to forgive you and then forgive yourself for allowing someone else’s shortcoming to distract you from moving towards your divine destiny. Decide today to follow your dream.
September 15th: Detour - When you are busy trying to get even with people you mess up your own destiny. Assignment: The next time you start fussing and shouting about showing someone “who’s the boss” or “who they’re messing with” begin to recite the scripture that rises in your spirit – and if you can‘t remember it, look it up and write it down for the next time, because that’s your ticket to the detour that’s going to get you back on the track of righteous living and destiny thinking.
September 14th: Disappoint - Instead, give your pain, agony and disappointment over to God. Put it all in God’s hands and let Him deal with it. Assignment: Disappoint the devil today – ask God to forgive the person you named on yesterday; then ask God to show you the promise in His Word that will replace the pain and bitterness that rises in you whenever you speak that person’s name.
September 13th: Decide - Secondly, to forgive you have to understand decisional forgiveness. You have to make a conscious decision to stop trying to get even with those who hurt you. Assignment: Today, name the one person that you know in your heart you must forgive. As crazy and unreasonable as it seems, Bishop Noel Jones says, “some times you have to lose your mind to get it back.”
September 12th: Unconditional - There must also be divine forgiveness reminding you that just as God has forgiven you for every wrong you’ve done and every mistake you have made, you must also provide that forgiveness to other people. Assignment: The parable of the unforgiving servant ends with that servant being turned over to the tormentors. When you refuse to forgive the consequences are that the tormentors of bitterness and anger take up residence in you. Forgive the offender in your heart – speak it aloud to you and to God. Pray a prayer of forgiveness to release you from the tormentors and release the offender to God.
September 11th: Unreliable - Look at yourself in the mirror and say, “I don’t have the power within me to forgive. I am too human. I want justice. I want to see the person who harmed me fall too.” You have to admit that it is not always possible to forgive out of your humanness. Assignment: Name the person you don’t feel like forgiving. In prayer, seek obedience over self-reliance to get even by admitting that you don’t feel like forgiving, but desire to forgive them as you are forgiven, releasing them to God, so that they may access to God’s grace and mercy as you have -- pray a prayer to forgive them.
September 10th: Unaware - You may ask, “What do I have to do if I am going to really forgive?” First, you have to understand that human forgiveness is rooted in divine forgiveness. This means that you must come to grips with yourself. Assignment: Give yourself a reality check today. Spend time in prayer asking the Holy Spirit to show you the situation(s)/person(s) that have taken residence in you for so long that you have forgotten and still need to forgive. Begin healing by forgiving the offender(s) and releasing them to God.
September 9th: Unloosed - The king called the servant on his debt and requested payment. The servant got on his knees, cried and pleaded with the king to forgive him. The same servant went out and found another man who owed him less than he himself owed the king and demanded payment. When the man pleaded for forgiveness and compassion, the servant grabbed him by his throat and showed him no mercy. Assignment: You can’t walk in freedom and obedience while you’re holding someone by the throat (unforgiveness). For the sake of obedience to God and your spiritual freedom, speak forgiveness from your heart and release that person to God.
September 8th: Unbiased - We hear about our responsibility to forgive in the Lord’s Prayer. In this prayer that Jesus taught His disciples, He says, “And forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.” It’s conditional. If I can forgive someone else, then I can be forgiven. But if I am unwilling to forgive, then I cannot be forgiven. Assignment: Since God is not biased, take a sheet of paper and draw a line down the middle. In the left column write the first three things that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind that you need God to forgive you for. Then in the right column write the names of three people who need your forgiveness (whether they have asked for it or not) – just their names, regardless of the offense. Then release yourself and them by asking for God’s forgiveness for all of you.
September 7th: Untold - Just as God forgives us every day, a true Christian has to learn to forgive others without limit or number. Assignment: Learning to forgive is a process. Recall the secret transgression that you have asked God to forgive you for; and recall the one who did something to you that you haven’t told anyone about and have been keeping the guilt or anger inside yourself. Begin the healing process by asking God to forgive that person daily, until the hurt or anger is no longer there.
September 6th: Unlimited - In his conversation with Jesus, Peter asks if seven times is enough. In His response, Jesus says, seventy-seven times, which means that you cannot quantify forgiveness. Assignment: Name one person who has wronged you. Try counting the number of times you have thought about or spoken about how they offended you. Now that you realize that an actual count is not possible, reverse the stronghold on you by speaking their forgiveness, which is limitless.
September 5th: Set-Up - So, Peter was being honest when he admitted that he was not a champion when it came to forgiveness. He was strong in some areas, but when it came to forgiveness he had quite a few lessons to learn. He wanted to know the parameters of forgiveness and Jesus’ answer did not make him feel any better. Assignment: Revisit the list that you made on the index card on yesterday. It may not make you feel better right now, but as your trespassers are truly forgiven, your burden is lightened and eventually you will feel much better.
September 4th: Shame - If you have ever been cheated on by a spouse or found out that your business partner double-crossed you, it is not that easy to forgive. When you find out that someone you call a friend has been busy assassinating your character and running your name into the ground, forgiveness is difficult. Assignment: Affirm yourself -- you are who God says you are, and not what others may say about you or treat you as anything except a child of God. On an index card write this affirmation and prayer: “I am your child, oh God, and I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” Then list the name(s) of those who have brought shame to your name and/or reputation. Use this each time you begin to experience the effect of shame brought on you by hurtful selfish acts of others.
September 3rd: Stagnation - I do not know why Christians try to make it seem as if they have mastered all aspects of forgiveness, because sometimes things happen to you that you just cannot surmount over night. Assignment: You may be bent, but you are not broken. Without denying what happened and the pain that came with it, decide today that what happened to you may have delayed but it cannot stop God’s plan for your future. Begin to stand upright and move towards your future. For the next three weeks read Jeremiah 29:11 and Romans 12:1-2 daily; also daily, read aloud a note that you write to yourself that (1) reminds you that you are a child of the Most High God and that vengeance is the Lord’s and (2) speaks forgiveness of the person who wronged you -- it lets them off YOUR hook, but not off GOD’S hook
September 2nd: Struggle - We sing, we get happy, we shout and we dance but when it comes to authentic forgiveness, how many of us of struggle? How many of us find authentic forgiveness difficult? Assignment: What is it that you experienced that you say you forgave the person for, but each time you think about what happened, you can feel the tension in your body? Pray now for the Holy Spirit to guide you away from the grip of superficial forgiveness in word only to authentic forgiveness in your heart.
September 1st: Sadness - Just that fast, Mr. Williams had died. So when his daughter arrived at the hospital, the nurse met her with bad news. Janie screamed in denial but eventually asked to see her father. She walked into the room by herself, moved to the bed, cried and said, “Daddy, I forgive you.” But her father was gone. On a sheet of paper she saw this message written, “Janie, I prayed to God that you would forgive me. I have forgiven you and I pray that you forgive me.” Assignment: There is a weight that comes with the sadness of a missed opportunity to forgive or ask for forgiveness before a loved one closes their eyes in eternal rest. That weight gets heavier over time, unless you forgive yourself. Take time to write a prayer that (1) confesses how you have felt because of the missed opportunity to say “I forgive you” or “please forgive me” before someone special passed away; (2) gives thanks to God for the opportunity to share what is on your heart; (3) ask for forgiveness for not releasing this burden to God sooner; and (4) give thanks to God who forgives you, as you forgive yourself and your loved one(s).
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