Healing requires forgiveness
“I promise I’ll change, just give me another chance.” This is something you may have heard in a friendship or relationship at some point in your life, and it’s often very conflicting. On one hand, you want to end the relationship because they have hurt you or someone you care about, but on the other, you want to believe that they really will change.
“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you,” Colossians 3:12-13.
We are taught that it is necessary to forgive others for wronging us, because God first forgave us, therefore it isn’t our responsibility to judge others. While forgiveness is important, it doesn’t cancel out the need for space or even separation. For example, we shouldn’t stay in an abusive relationship just because we forgive them, it’s also important to separate from things that could lead us into sin or pain.
“Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good,” Romans 12:9.
Hating what is evil doesn’t mean hating the person that wronged you, instead it means hating the sin and wanting God to execute justice upon that sin for His glory. We are taught to love even our enemies, so even if you have been wronged, you should still love and pray for the person who sinned against you so they can experience a relationship with God.
“Things change. And friends leave. Life doesn’t stop for anybody,” author of Perks of Being a Wallflower Stephan Chbosky said.
I feel like this really brings reason to the fact that even though we may face hardships, life keeps going on, and we can choose to make our struggles our whole identity, or we can make it a part of our story.
“And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective,” James 5:15-16.
God is able to forgive anyone of their sins no matter the weight, whether we forgive them or not. However, if we truly forgive someone who has sinned against us and pray for them, we can truly be healed and they can choose to heal as well.
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