Forgiveness

Each of us, if we have lived longer than a day, has been hurt by someone else. Someone reading this has had another lie to them, still another has felt the sting of disloyalty, another tricked out of money, and the list goes on and on. We all have been hurt by and have hurt others. So what shall we do to move from the control of the feelings we are experiencing to freedom?

What I am going to share with you in this post is taken mainly from "Total Forgiveness" by RT Kendall.

I am not going to take each of the points that follow and break them down because I believe most speak for themselves. First, we need to understand what Forgiveness is not. What Forgiveness is not will give us an understanding of the idea of Total Forgiveness. 

Forgiveness is not:
  1. Approval of what they did to you.
  2. Excusing what they did to you.
  3. Justifying what they did to you.
  4. Pardoning what they did to you.
  5. Reconciliation.
  6. Denying what they did to you.
  7. Blindness to what happened.
  8. Forgetting what happened.
  9. Refusing to take the wrong seriously.
10. Pretending we are not hurt.

 What is Total Forgiveness.
  1. Being aware of what someone has done and still forgiving them.
  2. Choosing to keep no records of wrong.
  3. Refusing to punish.
  4. Not telling what they did.
  5. Being merciful.
  6. Graciousness.
  7. It is an inner condition.
  8. It is the absence of bitterness.
  9. It is forgiving God for what happened.
10. It is forgiving ourselves for what happened.

Here is how you will know if you have totally forgiven someone else.

The ultimate proof of Total Forgiveness is not sitting down with the person and explaining how badly they hurt you and how you forgive them. It is not telling others how you have forgiven someone for what they have done to you. It is not writing in a blog how you forgive others.

The ultimate proof of Total Forgiveness takes place when we sincerely petition the Father to let those who have hurt us off the hook--even if they have hurt not only us, but also those close to us. Total Forgiveness involves an additional element: "Praying for God's blessings to rain down on the lives of your offenders."

Totally forgiving another person is an achievable act. It can be done, and it is something you and I must keep doing. 

Here is what I suggest you do: 

1. Ask God to help you prepare to Totally Forgive. 

2. Purchase Total Forgiveness and read it completely. 

3. Begin to petition God for blessings on the other person. That means their finances, their health and their ministry or profession even if they achieve more than you. 

4. Go before God and petition Him to pour out His Holy Spirit in your life so that you can Totally Forgive your offender(s). 

5. If you want to meet with the person who offended you do so with the intent to be a blessing to them not for sharing how you have forgiven them for what they did to you. 

6. Walk away from your hurt leaving the pain at the feet of Jesus and with it having no power over you any longer.

People are impressed most by changed lives and this one act will change your life forever and you will make a lasting impression on others and they may never know what you have done but they will see the results. 

I hope you have found this helpful and that God has began to bring healing into your life. I encourage you to begin the process of Total Forgiveness right now and do not quit until every hurt has been forgiven. When you totally forgive your enemy, you have crossed over into the supernatural realm.