Overflow of Forgiveness

I sat down to talk to Jesus the other day and realized the lengths I needed to forgive. There was a lot of things and people I needed to forgive – situations that had hurt me in which I had not processed and forgiven the person for it.

There’s a huge part of me, though, that does not like to forgive. I do not like to let people off the hook – to free them from their debt to me. It seems so easy to let it build up and have this “justifiable” anger within that boils out onto others.

Except, I don’t like myself like that. And it’s not at all biblical. I had been continually convicted of how I am to be gentle, kind, patient, tenderhearted with others. That was not me. That was not the overflow of my heart… so I knew something was wrong.

As I sat and processed with Jesus the various aspects of forgiveness that he was calling for, I realized that this was just one step towards freedom. I keep forgetting that while it is easy to hold onto un-forgiveness, it is freedom to forgive. It is hope, release, joy. It is stepping forward and surrendering everything to God and trusting that the judge of all the earth is right, that he will do right and will (if needed) avenge me. I need hold nothing against anyone. 

Besides, if we look at how much Christ has forgiven us, how small, pitiful, miniscule are these hurts that I have suffered?