"Forgive"

I understand they shouldn’t,

Have done the things they did,

Wounded you and used you,

When they were through got rid.

Of what was left of anything,

That seemed like love to you,

Just shows how low the meanness,

And injury can stoop.

So now what is your strategy,

To deal with all the hurt,

Don’t let it turn to bitterness,

So fight for all your worth.

Ask the Lord for healing grace,

Determine to forgive,

Let God take the vengeance,

And you go on and live.

‘Cause if you don’t forgive ‘em,

The way God forgave you,

You will drink the poison,

Thinking that will kill them, too.

But you will be the one it kills,

And poisons to the core,

Give place to the devil,

Until you say no more.

We all have hurt, we all have pain,

But by His stripes we heal,

So give it all to Jesus,

And find the grace that’s real.

Forgive the one, forgive ‘em all,

Be generous with grace,

And every weight you carry,

Will drop off in the race.

Forgive us, Lord, our trespasses,

As we forgive them, too,

Deliver us from evil,

Ans show us what to do.

“Get rid of all bitterness…” (Ephesians 4:31, NLT)

Bitterness comes from unresolved hurt. Bitter people continually react out of their pain, and typically allow their past to control how they relate to people now. They relive their anger over and over again, and since their injury is just below the surface, have the tendency to hurt others. Bitterness can even travel generationally in families, where people take up yesterday’s grudge and carry it forward. The enemy thrives on bitterness, and seeks to deepen and amplify it. It is not static, but continues to get worse until grace interrupts it. But that’s exactly what God’s grace can do! Grace can heal our wounds and empower us to forgive the way we’ve been forgiven. Do yourself a favor and everyone who knows and loves you: get rid of the bitterness, in Jesus’ name.

Lord, rid us of bitterness and teach us to forgive, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Tim Cox, timcox.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Tim, and god bless you.