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But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.” Mark 11:25-26 (NLT)
It’s tucked away, almost hidden, within Jesus’ teaching on prayer. The disciples were looking for answers. Jesus had just stated that using the power of prayer the disciples had the ability to move mountains. Then, almost as though He read their minds He answered a question that hadn’t been answered.
It’s as if one (or more) of the disciples was thinking: “I pray. I have faith in you. I believe. I don’t want to move mountains. I just want to understand my kids!” Jesus tells them that to have real power, to see God move mightily in your life and in the lives of others around you, here is the secret. Forgive.
Unresolved conflict and anger bind us and our prayer lives. When we harbor grudges, judgmental attitudes and a critical spirit against someone else it keeps Gods power from manifesting itself through us.
It’s interesting to note what Jesus doesn’t say in this passage. He doesn’t tell the disciples to “Go and have a conversation with the person and tell them you forgive them.” His statement concerns His followers DURING their prayer time. While they are praying, during the very process of their time with the Heavenly Father, forgive.
Forgiving others does not condone what they have done to you. If you have been abused, especially emotionally, the abuser won’t admit to anything anyway. It doesn’t require any action on the part of the perpetrator of your wound.
Forgiveness of others is between you and God. No one else needs to be involved. While there may be times when God will eventually lead you to confront the person you need to forgive, it really is an agreement between you and your Heavenly Father to release yourself from their grip of hate, anger or pain.
Forgiveness frees you. When you are angry at someone, it could be because of some intentional act on their part, or something that they did unintentionally, it causes a wound that refuses to heal. Forgiveness is a healing salve that comforts and soothes. Forgiveness is for your benefit, not the benefit of anyone else.
Forgiveness is humanly initiated, yet supernaturally accomplished. Sometimes the pain we endure is so great that we have to come to the Father over and over again to confess our inability to let go of the pain that was caused. The first step to healing is to confess our pain and anger to God and ask Him to empower you to forgive. From that point forward it is His working in you, and in the situation to free you from the horrific bondage of a wounded soul.
Forgiveness takes time. It isn’t some magic oil that you apply once to the wound and it’s gone. When you bear a grudge or have been hurt in some way it is like a physical wound, in some cases worse than that. Just as the wound take time to heal, forgiveness takes time to work its way through the pain. Be patient. Don’t allow the abuse or mistakes of your past to imprison you. Let the healing salve of forgiveness free you for all God has in store.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father. I never thought I’d have to admit to you that I harbor hatred towards others. Some of my hatred is because of what has been done to my loved ones. Some of it is because of direct or indirect attacks from others. Some of it, I confess, is a result of my inability to remember that I’m your child and I’ve allowed others to attack who I am in you. Help me to forgive. Empower me with your Spirit today to free myself from the prison others have me in. Show me grace so that I can show it to others. Thank you for loving me. Amen.
Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23
Imagine for a moment your day starting like this.
You groggily reach over to hit the snooze ‘one more time’. A few extra minutes will seem so good. As you do, you notice the room is filled with an eerie sort of a glow. You look over in the corner and notice a glowing shape sitting in the corner. No chair, it’s still sitting in the corner.
Even though you are only half awake and should be scared out of your wits, something you see in the face of this person not only keeps fear away, but peace and love flood your very soul. You’ve never seen an angel before, but you know this is no angel. This….is GOD!
Before you can speak, He does. “Good morning sunshine!” He says in a gentle, yet firm voice.
You stumble for words and the first words from your mouth you desperately wish you could pull back, but it’s too late. “How long have you been here?” What a stupid thing to ask God.
“I’ve always been here. Watching you all night long. Walking by your side during the day. Cherishing every moment we have together. But today I decided you needed a reminder that I’m real and I’m here.” He moves to the side of your bed and sits beside you, placing His hand gently on your shoulder. “I want you to know that I’ve got your day prepared for you. I’ve looked over every moment and know exactly what is going to happen. There will be some things that concern you, some that trouble you and there will be times that you even doubt my existence. But don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere and everything will work out EXACTLY as I have planned.
“Um, okay” You say as a sick feeling comes across your mind. “About yesterday….I didn’t mean to think those thoughts and I don’t know how I ended up on that website, and I never would have said those words if…”
He lifts your head so that you look Him square in the eyes. You have never seen love like this, or understanding, or compassion. “It’s okay. I know. We talked about this last night before you went to bed, remember? It’s a new day now. I love you. Now come on. You know how rush hour can be. We need to get going.”
A little farfetched? From a human standpoint maybe. But right in the middle of the book of Lamentations, a book that lives up to its name. A book full of sorrow and agony, there’s this little tidbit of truth, a gem sparking in the darkness. God loves you. Every night He watches you sleep. He walks with you throughout your day. He hears the words you speak, sees the sights you see, and is part of every thought that crosses your mind.
Regardless of where you take Him or what you let Him see or hear, or how often you completely forget about His presence, He is there watching, guarding and protecting. Every morning He longs for you to spend some time with Him. He loves you and His love starts out fresh, new and hot every day.
PRAYER: Father God, I praise you for the fact of your presence in my life. I worship you for the fact that you have gone on before me in everything that I do and that nothing in my day today, or any day, surprises you. Forgive me for some of the places I’ve taken you, the words I’ve let you hear or the thoughts you’ve been a part of. Thank you for your love. Help me to ‘see’ your presence throughout my day. Amen.
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Matthew 11:28-29 (NLT)
During the time that Jesus walked on earth Oxen were valuable for the farmer in order to plow and harvest crops. A good Ox was worth its weight in gold. Because of their value it was important that the Oxen were well cared for. One of the ways this was done was to make sure that they wore well-fitted yokes. An Ox or team of Oxen, with a good wooden yoke could pull a plow or wagon all day long because the stress was placed on the yoke, not the animal.
There is a legend about Jesus and yokes. Everyone knows that his father was a carpenter and no doubt Jesus also learned the trade before He began His ministry at the age of about 30. The legend states that Jesus was an expert craftsman with wood and His specialty was making wooden yokes.
Although it is probably just a legend, the story paints a beautiful picture of Jesus’ concern for us as we journey through the struggles of life. Jesus didn’t discount that we would encounter struggles and burdens in life. In fact, He promises us that we will see tribulation (or trials) as we walk with Him. Sometimes those trials seem to increase as we grow in our relationship with Christ.
Jesus doesn’t say that He will deliver us from the burdens of life. He does say that He will provide a way for us to endure those trials. When storms come, He provides safe haven. When we seem flooded by adversity He provides higher ground. When grief and sorrow attack, He gives peace that passes understanding.
We often struggle with life because the yoke of human endurance and the “I can do it myself” attitude doesn’t ‘fit us well’. It transfers the stress of the situation onto our shoulders and we bear the weight of worry, doubt, despair and shame.
Jesus says ‘Take my yoke upon you’. The yoke of forgiveness, the yoke of grace, the yoke of love. Feel the gentleness of His touch on your life. When we endure the trials of life our bodies may suffer, but with Jesus we experience rest-rest of the soul!
Other people can make us physically and emotionally uncomfortable. They can attack us with lies and shame and guilt about what we do or our past. People can’t attack our soul unless we choose to wear that yoke. Choose today to put on the yoke of Christ’s forgiveness, grace and love. Burdens will come. Some of them very heavy. But God never intended for us to bear them alone. That’s why He sent His Son, Jesus and His Holy Spirit, to give our souls rest.
PRAYER: Dear Jesus. Thank you for the promise that no matter how hard life gets for me, you are always there. Thank you that your yoke is easy and will allow me to bear the burdens of guilt, shame, worry and doubt that seem to attack me on a regular basis. Teach me to rely on You for rest. In Your name I claim rest for my soul even when my body may be filled with physical and emotional pain. Amen.
“I—yes, I alone—will blot out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again. Isaiah 43:25 (NLT)
From the very beginning of time, before the Creator-God formed the world from vast nothingness, He sought relationship. That’s why he created the world, so that he could enjoy the beauty of the trees and mountains and the pristine sea. He created man so that He could share His love with someone in His own image and together they could enjoy relationship. He created woman so that man would have an equal partner, a helper, a confidant, so they too would be able to enjoy-relationship.
Jehovah approaches the prophet Isaiah with a message to His people Israel. Because of their sin they had been forced into exile to endure the harsh rule of foreign kings. The land promised was desolate. The people were mistreated. Yet in the midst of their exile they still refused to change their ways.
In spite of their refusal, or inability to follow His commands Jehovah’s message to Israel, and to us, is this. Forget about the past mistakes. Forget about your poor decisions. Forget about the countless times you did what you knew you shouldn’t do. Come to me for forgiveness and I will forgive you.
He says to us,”I, yes I alone” because no one else is qualified to forgive us. Our sin is not against other people. Our sin is against Him. We sin against Him when we hurt other people (knowingly or not). We sin against Him when we ignore His commands or take the relationship He offers us for granted. Yet in the face of all our weakness and rebellion He offers us a clean slate.
This forgiveness isn’t a result of anything we did, or can do. His forgiveness isn’t even for our sake. This forgiveness is for His benefit so that He can once again enjoy the relationship He so much longs to have with us.
This forgiveness is not temporary of conditional. He states that He will ‘blot out your sins’. To blot out gives the image of a ledger book with a debt to be paid. A debt far too large to be resolved. A hopelessly large debt. Yet He takes, as it were, a huge rubberstamp and stamps the word “PAID” across the ledger in bold, blood red letters. Your sin will never more come to mind. He won’t as you travel the journey look back and say “You don’t learn do you? You did this five years, three months, two days and four hours ago too!” Nope. Won’t happen. It’s gone. Forgotten.
What a marvelous promise. What a wonderful hope. We don’t deserve it. We can’t earn it. It’s all because of love. Don’t let sins of today or of the past tie you down. Ask Him to forgive you and let it go. Don’t let fears of the future keep you from pressing on to work towards your dreams. Refuse to allow others to keep you imprisoned by reminding you of your faults. Father God loves you and made you just the way you are. He wants to help you.
PRAYER: Father God, once again I must come to you. I confess to you that even though I’ve been here before, I am still struggling with sin in my life. I’ve ignored you, failed to walk in relationship with you and even doubted you exist at times. Yet I’m tired of the pain. Tired of the guilt. Tired of the anger I can’t control. Please forgive me for the sins that plague me and help me to move on because of your wonderful, undying grace. In Jesus name I pray, Amen
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 