Day 17: Unforgiven
Today we continue our focus on this part of the Lord’s prayer:
“forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”
If we want to be forgiven by God, we must forgive those who sin against us. This can be incredibly hard. What if you choose to not forgive?
Warm Up:
Set a timer for 1 minute and clear your mind.
Round 1:
Write out Matthew 6:14-15—For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Round 2:
write down of a wrongful, hurtful or offensive act that was committed against you.
Round 3:
consider this pattern that can occur if you choose not to forgive when you are wronged, hurt or offended.
You become preoccupied with what happened—you rehearse it over and over.
You become a prosecuting attorney, methodically building your case—you pile up evidence in your heart and mind.
You become obsessed with “justice and accuracy.”—You judge motives, memorize exact words and demand punishment.
You become unable to love others well or think of the needs of others—it’s difficult to be present for loved ones and they notice it.
You become unable to see from any other vantage point but your own—your viewpoint becomes rigid and unrelenting.
You become more and more uptight and lose your joy—you are busy playing judge and jury and become unpleasant to be around.
You become progressively more unhealthy—bitterness causes you to be irrational, over-bearing, hyper-sensitive, angry and petty.
You become intent on telling “your side of the story” to as many as possible—eventually, almost everyone you know has been infected with your views.
You become unable to interpret history accurately—evidence that supports your case is all you see and your recall of what actually happened is getting hazy.
You gradually alienate yourself from anyone unwilling to agree with you—friendships and loyalty is questioned if others do not take your side 100%.
You become willing to question God’s motives, intentions and care—You come to the conclusion that God is defending the case of your enemy.
—Adapted from The Cure
by John Lynch, Bruce McNicol, Bill Thrall
Burn Out:
level up through surrender:
As preparation for tomorrow, ask the Lord to search your heart and reveal any signs of unforgiveness from the list in Round 3. Surrender those feelings and attitudes to God. Revisit the and pray through the Burn Out in yesterday’s Soul Workout if necessary. Prepare your heart to extend forgiveness tomorrow.