Ouch that hurt! Forgiveness.
Light For Life October 2004
Forgiveness is something that I sometimes take for granted and don’t really think too much about. It's not so much me asking for forgiveness that I forget, but actually forgiving others! I am a fairly forgiving person and so I automatically feel as if I have forgiven people, going into this mode out of habit rather than forgiving on purpose anyway.
I started thinking about this because of discussion with my kids. Being the regular parents that we are, we are always speaking to our sons about different areas of their lives. It might be folding up their clothes or turning off the television, but as with all kids there is always something. We have been speaking to them about tone of voice, about speaking nicely and how to ask for things and respond to instructions. They tended to snap a lot and answers came out of their mouths in a gruff way, which is not acceptable. As emerging teenagers it is something that is important to get in order. It seems we have been speaking about this for a long time but with only periods of change. We would talk and then things would right themselves for a season and then slip back again. The intention was always good and I could see that efforts were being made toward trying to change but I wondered why we were not seeing lasting change.
One morning we had another one of those grumpy conversations with one of them, which can be normal for kids at this hormonal stage, but it is still no excuse for bad behaviour. As we talked, all of a sudden I realised he needed to forgive us! This is why we had not seem long term change! The 'forgiveness' was not because we have done anything wrong or bad, but because our requests made him angry and so he had internalized his feelings of anger and these had turned to resentment. As we talked, I explained to him how bad feelings that are left alone on the inside of us fester. When we forgive we release people and burdens and that is very important for us, not just the other person.
A few days later I saw another pattern emerging to do with another relationship. I again realised that forgiveness was an issue here; and not because the other person has actually done anything wrong, it was because an 'apple cart' had been upset, things were made difficult, something was required of us and we were peeved!
I often ask for forgiveness, but I don’t often think to pray and say ‘Lord, I forgive such and such, who said something stupid and insensitive to me today and hurt me’. I didn’t think I held grudges! I usually feel annoyed or upset and then work through it, rationalizing it, by saying something like, ‘Oh well, she had no idea, she tends to put her foot in her mouth sometimes, she didn’t hear what she said to you from your side, Lord help me to let it pass'.
Is this actually forgiveness? Working through something till you feel ok is not necessarily forgiving them! After I had talked to my boys about forgiveness several times in a few days, I realised that I too carry these feelings that cause me to react to people in the wrong way. I needed and need to forgive. One of the tell tale signs that you need to forgive can be the sentence that you replay over and over again in your mind and you just can't get past it and let it go.
Is this ringing any bells for you? Perhaps there are people coming to your mind right now that have hurt or upset you, perhaps they have been insensitive and you have let it get down on the inside of you and cause you to ‘react’ to them. Now when something happens to me and I feel hurt, I am trying to be more aware of actually saying ‘Lord I forgive him/her, I don’t hold that against them’. With your sacrifice I wipe that hurt or offence off the board. I hold no scores!’
Who do you need to forgive and release today?
Bless you
Cam
Word For Life
Forgiving:
To do a favour, show kindness unconditionally, give freely, grant forgiveness, forgive freely.
To say or feel that one is no longer angry about and/or wishing to give punishment to someone for something.
God’s Word
Colossians 3:13
Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you must also do.
Friday, October 01, 2004
Wednesday, September 01, 2004
Never Alone - He is With Me.
Never alone, He is with me...
Light For Life September 2004
God is always with me and I should never feel alone, He is with me now and even to the end of the age. I have been thinking about the fact that He is always with me, even when I don’t realise it. I’ve been thinking how He is with me even when I feel totally alone and isolated. He is with me in the good and the bad times.
He is with me when I am so high and there is no one to whom I can express my joy and deep satisfaction; He is as ecstatic about my situation as I am. Its not just in the good times that this should be comforting, but also in the difficult moments of life. When you go through something that you can't really share with anyone else, or there is no one appropriate to share it with, He is still there. He is with me all the time. Most of the time there is no one else with us, when we have those downs, no one else can understand, there is no one else to share it with – but He is with me. He has been with me throughout the years, every moment in fact. He knows me better than anyone else.
We often feel He is with us in the happy times, and then when we are in the sad, low times we feel like we are alone. It is often easier to know we are not alone in the happy times, we feel comfortable and we feel joyous, but when we are low and there is no one physically with us we feel alone and isolated, no one understands and there is no one who can hear, but He is with us.
I realised that I should take more comfort in this thought than I have been up to date. He is with me always, every day, every minute, every hour, happy, sad, frustrated, fearful, even sinning!
Why is it that I feel more ready to share with Him, when things are good, when things are easy? I can say, “Praise you Lord, Thank you for answering my prayer, I am so happy”. But when I am down or low, I know He is there but I still look for someone to console me!!
Of course we do need someone to console us, but as we grow, we learn to let that someone be God more of the time, we know He is with us. When we are low we can allow ourselves to feel very isolated from others, even when they are physically there they may not know how we are feeling and be totally unaware of the emotion we are experiencing.
It is at those times that we should feel less alone and really feel surrounded, loved and cared for by God. He is the only one who REALLY can be there for us always. He knows every detail so we don’t have to make Him understand where we are at or justify why – He knows why! We can just cry, we can just say it – no explanation needed. He was there when it happened. And, knowing the end from the beginning, who better qualifies to tell us what to do?
He comforts our sorrows for He carried them.
Take comfort today. He is with you in all these moments too.
Word For Life
With:
In the presence of, beside, near, among or including.
God’s Word
Mathew 28:20
And Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
Bless you
Cam
Light For Life September 2004
God is always with me and I should never feel alone, He is with me now and even to the end of the age. I have been thinking about the fact that He is always with me, even when I don’t realise it. I’ve been thinking how He is with me even when I feel totally alone and isolated. He is with me in the good and the bad times.
He is with me when I am so high and there is no one to whom I can express my joy and deep satisfaction; He is as ecstatic about my situation as I am. Its not just in the good times that this should be comforting, but also in the difficult moments of life. When you go through something that you can't really share with anyone else, or there is no one appropriate to share it with, He is still there. He is with me all the time. Most of the time there is no one else with us, when we have those downs, no one else can understand, there is no one else to share it with – but He is with me. He has been with me throughout the years, every moment in fact. He knows me better than anyone else.
We often feel He is with us in the happy times, and then when we are in the sad, low times we feel like we are alone. It is often easier to know we are not alone in the happy times, we feel comfortable and we feel joyous, but when we are low and there is no one physically with us we feel alone and isolated, no one understands and there is no one who can hear, but He is with us.
I realised that I should take more comfort in this thought than I have been up to date. He is with me always, every day, every minute, every hour, happy, sad, frustrated, fearful, even sinning!
Why is it that I feel more ready to share with Him, when things are good, when things are easy? I can say, “Praise you Lord, Thank you for answering my prayer, I am so happy”. But when I am down or low, I know He is there but I still look for someone to console me!!
Of course we do need someone to console us, but as we grow, we learn to let that someone be God more of the time, we know He is with us. When we are low we can allow ourselves to feel very isolated from others, even when they are physically there they may not know how we are feeling and be totally unaware of the emotion we are experiencing.
It is at those times that we should feel less alone and really feel surrounded, loved and cared for by God. He is the only one who REALLY can be there for us always. He knows every detail so we don’t have to make Him understand where we are at or justify why – He knows why! We can just cry, we can just say it – no explanation needed. He was there when it happened. And, knowing the end from the beginning, who better qualifies to tell us what to do?
He comforts our sorrows for He carried them.
Take comfort today. He is with you in all these moments too.
Word For Life
With:
In the presence of, beside, near, among or including.
God’s Word
Mathew 28:20
And Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
Bless you
Cam
Sunday, August 01, 2004
On Assignment
On Assignment!
Light For Life August 2004!!!!
I have a sense of anticipation for the future and where God is leading me. I feel as though I am on the verge of something new but it is unknown; I have begun to surrender myself to God’s plans for me and not hold onto mine. I have a sense of expectation that God knows the next step and I can trust Him. Regardless of where I think I am in life, or where I should be, I am always on 'assignment' and so are you; its just that a lot of the time we don’t know it or are unaware of it. We may think that we are not where we need or want to be, but right now we might be just where God wants us!!!! Have you considered that?
God’s assignments are not always for us to be ‘angels of mercy’ to those in need or to have an up front role, some are to prepare us for the next stage by behind the scenes work, deep in our lives. This may happen through such means as serving others, which may allow the uncovering of our true inward character, revealing weaknesses that we had no idea were there... Our assignment might be to sit a test, like an exam that is sprung on us by the teacher, or like a major project due in next week, sometimes they last a day and sometimes a week. Some of these assignments are easy and some we may enjoy, but its the ones that are difficult that we like to think are not from God at all!
I won't pretend to know much about diamonds, but I imagine that a diamond in its rough form needs a lot of work for it to become the object of beauty that it can be. If it didn't undergo every process needed, would it be brought to its fullest beauty and value? So too, God shapes us all round, it is thorough and complete, He leaves nothing out, He doesn't want a whole lot of lop sided people walking around! The bible says 'Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will bring it unto completion on the day of Jesus Christ' (Philippians 1:6), and that means process.
It was as I was speaking to my pastor that I realised that I have been on assignment, she helped me see it. Funny that, because for a time, when I didn’t understand what was going, I thought this is all wrong it must be the devil attacking me! At times that may indeed be the case, but there are times that we might be just where God wants us – to teach us something. God does not enjoy allowing hard things in our lives to teach us but they are one of the tools He will use for our growth.
In my life I am constantly coming before God in prayer, He knows my heart is towards becoming more like His Son. I have found that because that is where my heart is and I want to be open and willing, it's only natural that I will, in the process of life have to work through issues to become rounded, complete and balanced. If you are open to Him so will you, but, God is one we can trust, when He is working in our life we are safe because He is in control.
When you are on one of these assignments you might be tempted to get into self-condemnation, self pity, feeling like a failure, weak, insignificant, hopeless and unworthy but don’t do it. It also says in the bible ‘For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God’, we are all weak and human, but thank God that He is God and that He is able to keep us from falling!
Work with God and not against His purposes and you will feel free-er than ever. He loves you with an ever lasting love, His steadfast love never ceases, His mercies never come to an end, they are new every morning and great is His faithfulness and it is His kindness that leads us to repentance. He loves us through every stage and never wants to give up. Keep in mind that even if you are in a difficult place right now - you may be on assignment! Learn all you can while you are there, submit yourself to God and don't fight against it if you sense it is God. Ask Him to speak to you, as He is the one with all the answers. Go through and then you move on - the less delays the better!
Bless you
Cam
Word For Life
Assignment:
A position, office, or job which one is given or to which one is being sent.
God’s Word
1 Peter 1:7
'...that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honour and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Light For Life August 2004!!!!
I have a sense of anticipation for the future and where God is leading me. I feel as though I am on the verge of something new but it is unknown; I have begun to surrender myself to God’s plans for me and not hold onto mine. I have a sense of expectation that God knows the next step and I can trust Him. Regardless of where I think I am in life, or where I should be, I am always on 'assignment' and so are you; its just that a lot of the time we don’t know it or are unaware of it. We may think that we are not where we need or want to be, but right now we might be just where God wants us!!!! Have you considered that?
God’s assignments are not always for us to be ‘angels of mercy’ to those in need or to have an up front role, some are to prepare us for the next stage by behind the scenes work, deep in our lives. This may happen through such means as serving others, which may allow the uncovering of our true inward character, revealing weaknesses that we had no idea were there... Our assignment might be to sit a test, like an exam that is sprung on us by the teacher, or like a major project due in next week, sometimes they last a day and sometimes a week. Some of these assignments are easy and some we may enjoy, but its the ones that are difficult that we like to think are not from God at all!
I won't pretend to know much about diamonds, but I imagine that a diamond in its rough form needs a lot of work for it to become the object of beauty that it can be. If it didn't undergo every process needed, would it be brought to its fullest beauty and value? So too, God shapes us all round, it is thorough and complete, He leaves nothing out, He doesn't want a whole lot of lop sided people walking around! The bible says 'Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will bring it unto completion on the day of Jesus Christ' (Philippians 1:6), and that means process.
It was as I was speaking to my pastor that I realised that I have been on assignment, she helped me see it. Funny that, because for a time, when I didn’t understand what was going, I thought this is all wrong it must be the devil attacking me! At times that may indeed be the case, but there are times that we might be just where God wants us – to teach us something. God does not enjoy allowing hard things in our lives to teach us but they are one of the tools He will use for our growth.
In my life I am constantly coming before God in prayer, He knows my heart is towards becoming more like His Son. I have found that because that is where my heart is and I want to be open and willing, it's only natural that I will, in the process of life have to work through issues to become rounded, complete and balanced. If you are open to Him so will you, but, God is one we can trust, when He is working in our life we are safe because He is in control.
When you are on one of these assignments you might be tempted to get into self-condemnation, self pity, feeling like a failure, weak, insignificant, hopeless and unworthy but don’t do it. It also says in the bible ‘For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God’, we are all weak and human, but thank God that He is God and that He is able to keep us from falling!
Work with God and not against His purposes and you will feel free-er than ever. He loves you with an ever lasting love, His steadfast love never ceases, His mercies never come to an end, they are new every morning and great is His faithfulness and it is His kindness that leads us to repentance. He loves us through every stage and never wants to give up. Keep in mind that even if you are in a difficult place right now - you may be on assignment! Learn all you can while you are there, submit yourself to God and don't fight against it if you sense it is God. Ask Him to speak to you, as He is the one with all the answers. Go through and then you move on - the less delays the better!
Bless you
Cam
Word For Life
Assignment:
A position, office, or job which one is given or to which one is being sent.
God’s Word
1 Peter 1:7
'...that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honour and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
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