Forgiveness is the key to salvation and freedom in every area of our lives. This article on forgiveness by fellow blogger Abraham’s Daughter really touched me this morning. Many struggle this time of year with friends and family who do not understand our particular walk (lifestyle) in Messiah. Harsh words, judgment, and criticism often color this so-called “holiday” season with darkness, resentment, and bitterness.
I encourage you to LET GO of the hurt and pain this year. Release those that may have said or done unsavory things to you in the past. Let’s follow the example of Joseph and know that even if our brothers/sisters meant to harm us, God can and will use us as a vessel of mercy to preserve life, if we will forgive them and not seek our own vengeance. When we release others in forgiveness, we are really setting ourselves free from the chains of resentment and bitterness. This opens wide the path to true healing and real love.
Joseph’s forgiveness not only changed the course of his family; it changed the course of the whole world. If Joseph had not been in Egypt, the Egyptians would have all perished along with Jacob’s family.
Had Joseph not been willing to surrender his hurt, his bitterness, and anger, there would have been no nation of Israel and no Savior born in Bethlehem. As Paul Boese has said, “Forgiveness does not change the past; but it does enlarge the future.” Several years ago, my mother’s decision to forgive also changed the course of my family’s life.
In 1979, when I was 27 years old, my mother phoned her four children and asked us to meet with her. That Friday evening we gathered at my parents’ home to learn that our father had fallen in love with a woman, one year my senior, at his workplace, and that he had left Mom to…
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GRACE in TORAH 