OUCH!

2 Corinthians 5:5-11

5  I don’t want to be hard on you. But if one of you has made someone feel bad, I am not really the one who has been made to feel bad. Some of you are the ones. 6 Most of you have already pointed out the wrong that person did, and that is punishment enough for what was done.

7  When people sin, you should forgive and comfort them, so they won’t give up in despair. 8 You should make them sure of your love for them.

9  I also wrote because I wanted to test you and find out if you would follow my instructions. 10 I will forgive anyone you forgive. Yes, for your sake and with Christ as my witness, I have forgiven whatever needed to be forgiven.  

11 I have done this to keep Satan from getting the better of us. We all know what goes on in his mind.

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This spoke to me this morning, in a rather painful way.  It's pretty clear, isn't it?  We are commanded to forgive others.  When we don't, we give our enemy an open door to mess with us.  OUCH!

I pray that I can close the door, and you can too, if you are dealing with unforgiveness toward anyone.

I guess this would include the need for self-forgiveness too, wouldn't it?  I bet satan loves when we don't forgive ourselves, it makes his job (of messing with us and distracting us from Jesus) easier.  We are so focused on ourselves and our anger, our regret, our hurt, our garbage that we are pretty much taken out of the game.  Benched by our own minds, as it were.

Lord, I pray that you would help us to all see the harm choosing not to forgive (either ourselves or others) does to us.  Help us to choose your way, the way of love and forgiveness.  Help us to slam shut any doors we may have opened for our enemy.

Help us to cooperate with you, Lord.  Help us to make the choice to forgive.  Help us to see that forgiveness is not about the other person, but it's about us.  It's about our choosing to cooperate with you, to obey you.  It's a choice that we must make.  A deliberate act of will.  Help us to see it your way God.  Help us to make the right choice.  Help us to be more like your Son, who is Love.

In the precious name of Jesus,

Amen