Jeremiah 31: 34
“I will forgive their wrongdoing and never again remember their sin.”
In the few pages of this lesson, Priscilla challenges us to stop for a moment and take a look inside ourselves. As women, when we don’t WANT to deal with our hurts, frustrations, anger and bitterness, we tend to stay busy or focus our attention on everyone else. Priscilla begs us to STOP today…. right now…. and begin to look inside.
If you don’t feel like forgiveness is an issue for you right now, bless you! Hebrews 12:15 is your verse to stand on so that you can continue to see to it that “….no root of bitterness springs up causing trouble.”
You may be currently walking through a season where you are walking through each day with a happy face on like you don’t have a care in the world, but on the inside you are in turmoil and hardly living. Dear sister, if this describes you…. please know that THIS is not what God intends for your life! As much as you try to hide your pain, hurt and bitterness, it is slowly seeping out all over your body and will soon, when you least expect it, spew over into every part of your life.
On page 130 Priscilla writes:
“Instead of working so hard to keep the focus and spotlight on everyone else- both those who’ve hurt us as well as those who make us feel better and forget all about it- let’s be willing to drag out these grudges we’re holding and harboring, these heavy containers of unforgiveness that never stop leaching poisons into our system.”
Are you ready to be on your way to healing?
Are you ready to really LIVE?
Well…. then its time to get real and let God into these places where we have been so intentionally keeping Him out.
Priscilla also gives us some wonderful scripture to reference as we begin this journey:
Passages on forgiveness:
- Mark 11:25-26- making reconciled relationships a regular part of our praying
- Matthew 6:14-15- how our unforgiveness of others relates to God’s forgiveness of us.
- Hebrews 12:14- the blessing that flows from pursuing peace with everyone.
Passages on bitterness:
- Ephesians 4:31- the only good thing to do with it is to get rid of it.
- Hebrews 12:15- what bitterness can so if it’s not pulled up by the roots
- Proverbs 14:10- all we can ever expect from hanging on to it.
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Your Assignment:
Prayer fully consider: Who, if anyone, are the people you harbor unforgiveness toward? How have you seen this affect your life?
Please share what the Lord shows you with us in a comment below….
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Let’s Pray:
Lord, this journey is not easy and we recognize that we cannot do this without You and Your supernatural intervention. Thank you for this precious gift we are able to unlock through the redemptive work of Your Son. Be with each of us today, Father, as we dig deep within and prepare for surgery on our internal injuries to be healed once and for all to be able to be our very best for Your glory! Show us what YOU want us to see, Father. Help us become vulnerable to these areas of our life that we have been hiding in order to not be robbed of this healing you have for us any longer. We thank you in advance for what You will do., In Jesus’ name we pray, amen <3
Now it’s time to go back to your Facebook Online Bible Study Group to see what your Daily Activity is!! I’m guessing it’s going to be a fun one!! If you are not currently in one our FB OBS Groups, and would like to be, please send an email to: GirlfriendsCoffeeHour@gmail.com, and we’ll be glad to add you!!
Blessings,
Megan 🙂
Read all about Craig’s Resolution for Men Journey here: www.adversusmundi.wordpress.com
The Resolution for Women: Internal Injuries
August 14, 2012 by
About Megan SmidtMegan Smidt – Co-Founder of Girlfriends Coffee Hour
Megan and her husband Craig live in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, along with their 5 children ranging in age from 21 years old to 14. Megan is a Certified Christian Life Coach specializing in Relationship Coaching and more specifically, Blended Family Relationships. She also works part-time as Personal Assistant to Christian Musician Yancy. She loves to travel and spend time with family and friends. She enjoys reading, music, movies, photography, paper crafting, sewing and roller skating.
My biggest problem when it comes to forgiving people is forgiving myself. I'm not a grudge holder. If my hubby did something years ago and we have an argument (a really bad one) I don't get historical and open old wounds. I have grace aplenty for most everybody but myself. If I don't get the things that I feel I ought to get done done I get upset with myself. But instead of getting mad and doing more I don't do anything. And then other things go undone and I continue to get upset and then I get into a pity party that I'm worthless and can't do anything right and get depressed and it's just a viscious cycle that goes on and on until I get over myself and forgive myself and say, "let's get going. You can do this." it's something I've been working on for years and I'm better about it but still have a long way to go.
Tracy, I would love to recommend the book "How to forgive ourselves totally" by RT Kendall to you. It will help you to unpackl this further and help lead you toward finally breaking this sysle for GOOD!!!! Praying for you, my friend, for I know how hard and hopeless this feels <3
http://www.amazon.com/How-Forgive-Ourselves-Total…
I guess if I had to put a label on just one thing/person that I am having trouble forgiving it would have to be my brother-in-law and sister-in-law. What they did was inexcusable and I know that continuing to be upset over it isn't good. I don't think about it all the time but when the moment comes up I am at the graveside of my mother-in-law and the tears well up and it takes a lot to allow them flow. It has been twelve years. My mother-in-law left some money when she died and she told them that she wanted a family reunion at her funeral. Well, everyone knew about it except us and they made it sound like they needed to save some money and could we leave some of the kids home and just bring the older boys because they were to be the pall-bearers. Okay, I left three of my kids home because of the money issue. They didn't want us to stay at the hotel with the rest of the family either. Went to the funeral, cried all the way through it, went to the graveside and the younger brother-in-law told me what Mom wanted. I was sick to my stomach! I had disappointed my mother-in-law again. I cried for days. Both of these people made my husband and I believe that there was a shortage of funds and that we had too many kids to bring them all. My sister-in-law has six girls and they all made it, this couple has three kids, they all made it. The other brother in law had one and they all made it. We were the only ones that did not have our whole family at Mom's last family reunion. Even today, I am so angry at how they did this and how it hurt my husband and I. I am sure that Mom knows what happened and that she is not angry with me, but I let her down! I was the reason that her last wish was not fulfilled. I know that it was not because of anything willful on my part, but it is in there. These people are so selfish and mean for having done this that usually just seeing the name, drives me to come "unglued"!
After writing my list and looking at it, there are things on there I don't know why they are there. I don't hold grudges but I believe the enemy does not want peace and harmony with others. So he uses my memory to recall events that don't have any effect on me but is just something that happened in the pass. I guess it is his way of trying to cause strife and make me question did I really forgive and if so then why is it still her. This is when I have to go to the Lord and have a heart check.
I have a very hard time forgiving myself when it comes to forgiveness. I am still having trouble forgiving the two that murdered my cousin in 1991. I am still having trouble forgiving my dad for treating me the he does and the way he treated me as a kid. This resolution is my Pandora's box and it is so hard for me to open up about this.