Truthful Tuesdays - Forgiveness

So, I have had this thought in my head for a few weeks of sharing God's truths a few Tuesdays a month. So, I am going to try it and see where the Lord my lead me.  I feel like He laid it on my heart to share these truths that I know and that I read and study about and quite honestly I have been sitting on my hands the past few weeks. I was so excited about it and the possibilities and then when I went to actually start typing....I froze in fear.  I am not the best or most eloquent with my words and typing...I have these thoughts but putting them to words that make sense to others sometimes is a struggle.  Then I thought, who am I to try and explain God's truth...I am not worthy or qualified.  So, these lies crept into my head and so I just kept putting it off.  Each week the Spirit would nudge me to share on this idea and I would find a million reason's not to sit and type.  I have been unfaithful.

Which leads me to my first topic about His Forgiveness because I need it!  And I need it a million times over!  It is funny when a reoccuring theme appears in your life.  Like every time I turn around I hear or read something about forgiveness in the past two weeks.  It started with a conversation with a sweet friend and how important it is that we teach our children about forgiveness and as I mentioned a few post back, I want to begin having these conversations with Collier so that he can also understand.  But then, I went to sunday school this week and guess what the topic is for the next 4 weeks?  Yep, forgiveness.  And then, I read my lent devotional over the weekend and Psalm 32 is the scripture... V.5b

I said to myself 'I will confess my rebellion to the LORD'.  And you forgave me!  all my guilt is gone

and I was reminded that when we do confess, that we are forgiven.  And through His forgiveness we are then 'free to hear a fresh call from God, to hear when He whispers and feel when He nudges'[YouVersion Bible App Lent for Everyonereading plan by NT Write].  According to Pslam 32 we can rejoice in our forgiveness and that is something that I am not sure that I have done very well but want to learn how to. Instead I am normally walking away with my tail tucked between my legs and my head down instead of looking up to Him.

In sunday school we talked about how there are different kinds of forgiveness[from John Claypools, Mending the Heart] or wounds that are in need of mending: forgiveness when we have been hurt by others - grievance.  Forgiveness for the wrong we have done - guilt.  My personal struggle is with the latter!  I am learning though more and more about identifying the sin in my life, which is often revealed to me through The Spirit, and being able to confess that wrong thought and/or action and turn from it so that I can rejoice in the forgiveness that I am granted.

So, then on Friday I went for a quick run by myself and this song came on, I am not sure that I have ever heard it until Friday and I was yet struck again with the topic of forgiveness.  Ok God, I hear ya! There is nothing to big for God to forgive.  We will all fall down, but if we call out to Him we can be set free.  He forgets what has been forgiven.


Then on the flip side....this song really puts into perspective about our ability and need to forgive others. Sometimes it is just hard to let go and let someone off the hook for what they have done.  But honestly God does it for us every day.  God wants us to forgive others...because it free's us from the bondage that grips us and puts us in a downward spiral of anger, sadness and guilt. Something that was said in Sunday school was 'let go and look up'.  oh such good advice.  If we are not letting go we can't move forward and no one wants to be stuck in the same place.  It can just make you crazy re-hashing and replaying whatever happened over and over in your head..it just isn't good.


We are loved so much by God that He sent His son to live and die on the cross, but he raised Him so that He defeated death itself.  Through Jesus we are forgiven.  So, lets also forgive other and rejoice in this freedom!