A Clean Slate

 

By Andrea Merrell

If we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

1 John 1:9 NLT

 

Remember the old chalkboards we used in school many moons ago? Did you ever get stuck with the task of cleaning one? I did. It was almost impossible to get all the chalk off, so the board never looked really clean.

With the invention of the white board and dry-erase markers, the task became much easier. A few good swipes is all it takes.

With God, it’s even easier to erase mistakes. One sincere prayer of repentance, and He wipes the slate clean. “I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins” (Jeremiah 31:34 NLT).

How is that possible for God when we’re constantly bombarded with thoughts about everything we’ve done wrong? Because the Bible says, “He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west” (Psalm 103:12 NLT). If that’s not enough to convince us, Micah 7:19 says, “You will trample our sins under your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!” (NLT).

God take forgiveness seriously—and so should we. When we mess up, He promises that if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness” (1 John 1:9 NLT).

God will never dredge up our sins and hold them against us, so why should we?

Do you have a clean slate? 

Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net and winnond.

Just Own It

By Andrea Merrell

 

Here’s how I imagine the conversation going when God asked Adam why he ate fruit from the forbidden tree in the Garden.

“Not my fault, God.” Adam shrugged. “It was my wife’s idea. Gotta keep the little woman happy, right?”

“I see,” God said and turned to Eve. “Care to explain why you chose to disobey my one and only rule?”

Eve’s mind raced as she looked from God to Adam to the tree—where the Devil was hiding, peeking out at her with a wicked grin. Eve pointed to the tree. “It’s his fault. The Devil made me do it.”

It was the first blame game. Adam blamed Eve, then Eve blamed the Devil. Have you ever wondered what would have happened if Adam and Eve had taken responsibility for their own actions and asked God’s forgiveness? Life would have turned out very differently. But then we’ll never know …

Our carnal nature—along with prompting from the Enemy—compels us to say and do whatever we have to in order to stay out of trouble. Instead of owning it and fessing up (as my grandparents used to say), we make excuses and look for someone else to blame.

We’re all going to mess up. Make Mistakes. Sin. It’s part of our humanness. But trying to hide it from God while shifting the blame is pointless, because God already knows. All He wants is for us to come to Him with a repentant heart and confess our junk. When we do, His forgiveness and cleansing will be swift and sure.

Next time you mess up, don't blame someone else … just own it.

(Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net and Stuart Miles.)

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Time Doesn't Heal All Wounds

By Andrea Merrell

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 5:16 NIV

 

“Time heals,” they say. True in some respects. Many times over the years when I thought a physical ailment would never go away, it did. Sometimes that ailment needed medication, stitches, physical therapy, or even surgery, but healing eventually came.

There have been other times I’ve waited for inner wounds to heal. A broken heart. Scars deep in my soul. Bad memories that kept resurfacing no matter how hard I tried to push them down. Just when I thought enough time had passed and the wounds were healed, they would break open, and all that hurt and anguish would ooze out again … and again … and …

The truth is time alone doesn’t heal all wounds. At least not without a little cooperation on our part.

I’ve found that in order to silence those hurtful, negative voices from the past, I can’t keep ignoring them, hoping they’ll go away. I have to face them head on and deal with them once and for all.

The process begins with forgiveness. Forgiving my offenders. Asking forgiveness for hanging on to the past. And then forgiving myself. Talking with a trusted friend or counselor might also be helpful at times. But the most important part is giving my burdens to the Lord—casting the whole of my care over on Him, the Great Physician.

Time can lessen the effect of some past situations, but the wounds will never be completely healed until we deal with them.

Go ahead. Begin the healing process today. God is ready to set you free.

(Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net and Kittisak.)

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Time can lessen the effect of some past situations, but the wounds will never be completely healed until we deal with them. via @AndreaMerrell(Click to tweet.)

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The Prison of Unforgiveness

By Andrea Merrell

The woman swiped at tears as she described her dream.

The cell was dark and dirty. Pictures hung from the bars surrounding me, all memories of my past. Terrible, hurtful memories that tormented me. I cried out for help, but no one came. I looked out the tiny window and saw the sunlight. Heard the laughter of those who were free. My heart longed for peace. I wanted my life back.

This was a reoccurring dream. She was securely locked in a prison of unforgiveness—a prison of her own making. Forgiving others for the abuse she had suffered was something she could not, would not do. The sad part is that as long as she refuses to forgive her offenders, she will remain in bondage.

I can so relate to her story. Can you? When people purposely say and do terrible things to us, we feel betrayed. It’s easy to develop a victim mentality, telling ourselves the offender doesn’t deserve our forgiveness.

But who suffers? We do. Our heart becomes hard as the painful memories continue to haunt us. We lose our peace and our joy. And the worst part? We feel as if God has abandoned us.

Jesus has a lot to say about the subject. Forgive and you will be forgiven (Luke 6:37 NKJV). And forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us (Luke 11:4 NLT). He even asked the Father to forgive those who beat Him and put Him on the cross (Luke 23:34). What a beautiful example.

Forgiving others is powerful. It is the key that unlocks the door of the prison cell. That’s the first step. The second is to bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you (Luke 6:28 NKJV). That’s when our peace and joy return. That’s when we know we’re truly free.

If you’re locked in a prison of unforgiveness, God is handing you the key today. You can be free in the blink of an eye.

(Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net and sakhorn38.)

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Forgiving others is powerful. It is the key that unlocks the door to the prison of unforgiveness. via @AndreaMerrell (Click to tweet.)

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When the Truth Hurts

By Andrea Merrell

 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.

John 8:32 NLT

“You’re still carrying an offense.”

The words, spoken in love and not with criticism or accusation, hit a nerve—a raw one. My heated reaction revealed the truth of the statement. “I am not!”

My reaction was followed by a bucketful of tears and an afternoon of getting things right with the Lord. After a time of prayer and honest, let’s-get-real soul-searching, my heart was clean and the offense gone.

They say the truth hurts. I’ve found that to be true on many occasions. But what I’ve also discovered is when we choose to ignore it instead of facing it head-on, things only get worse. Jesus Himself said the truth would set us free. The Passion translation puts it this way:  For if you embrace the truth, it will release more freedom into your lives.

In my mind, I had forgiven. But in my heart, I still carried the offense. Left unattended to fester, it would have turned into a root of bitterness. It hurt to face the truth, but that’s what it took to set me free.

If you want to release more freedom into your life, don’t be afraid to embrace the Truth of God’s Word. His Truth will transform your life.

(Photo courtesy of Blogpiks.com and Stuart Miles.)

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If you want to release more freedom into your life, don’t be afraid to embrace the Truth of God’s Word. His Truth will transform your life. via @AndreaMerrell (Click to tweet.)

Spiritual Root Canal

By Andrea Merrell

Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive

the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness

grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.

Hebrews 12:15 NLT

“You’re carrying an offense.”

 

It was the last thing I wanted to hear, especially from my husband. I disagreed—loudly—telling him my offense had been dealt with and put behind me.

Then why did I get so angry? I asked myself. Why did I lash out at the person who loves me and was only trying to help me?

Taking on an offense can be so subtle we hardly realize it. Even when we think we’ve forgiven someone, it’s easy to ignore the root of bitterness that has embedded itself in our heart. That bitterness taunts us, raising its ugly head every time the offending person’s name is mentioned.

Psalm 119:165 says Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them (KJV).

Seriously? Nothing? That’s a tall order, but God never instructs us to do anything He doesn’t give us the power to do.

Pastor and author Bob Gass says this:

Turn to God. Give Him all your worries and cares … for He cares about you (1 Peter 5:7 NLT). Give Him your pain, your failures, your hang-ups, and your challenges. Forgive the person who hurt you. Obsessing over what they did and trying to make them pay just keeps you chained to them. But forgiveness breaks the chain and sets you free. In your own strength you may be able to do something to alleviate your pain. But God can destroy the root of the pain and cause you to walk victoriously into the future.

If someone has hurt you, and your offense—left unattended—has caused a root of bitterness to take hold, allow God to do a spiritual root canal today and destroy the root of your pain.

(Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net/Stuart Miles.)

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 If someone has hurt you and caused a root of bitterness, allow God to do a spiritual root canal. (Click to Tweet.)

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Don't Push the Hot Button

By Andrea Merrell

Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.

Romans 12:18 NLT

I shouldn’t have said it, but it came out anyway. It was one of those statements that pushes every hot button and sets an argument into motion. Once the words were uttered, there was no way to take them back.

When would I ever learn?

Why do we do that … especially when we know how destructive hateful words can be to a relationship?

Marriage, friendships, and family interactions take work. We have to choose to overlook the faults and shortcomings of others, just like we want them to do for us. How? By putting their needs and feelings above our own and avoiding conversations that breed conflict, anger, and resentment.

The Bible instructs us to walk in love, forgive when wronged, and to live in peace with others as much as possible. That’s a tall order, but God will give us the grace we need to follow His Word if we’ll just ask.

And another thing … stay away from those hot buttons.

(Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net/Stuart Miles.)

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God will give us grace to walk in love, forgive when wronged, and live in peace with others. (Click to Tweet.)

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Why Should I Bless My Enemies?

By Andrea Merrell

But I say unto you, Love your enemies,

bless them that curse you,

do good to them that hate you,

and pray for them which despitefully use you,

and persecute you.

Matthew 5:44 KJV

Learning the importance of forgiving others and putting it into practice is one thing, but the ability to bless those who have hurt and offended you is a whole different ballgame.

I can think of a couple of situations in my life when I was devastated by the words and actions of people who were supposed to be my friends, as well as my fellow Christian brothers and sisters. The wounds went deep and I felt betrayed.

But I knew I must forgive.

It didn’t happen immediately. It was more of a process … an act of faith. I offered prayers of forgiveness until they moved from my head to my heart. When anxious, angry feelings stopped popping up whenever these people came to mind, I thought the battle was over. But … no. Now it was time to love, pray for, and bless those who had done me wrong (Matthew 5:44-45).

It’s hard enough to forgive someone who has despitefully used you, let alone bless them. This goes completely against the flesh, our carnal nature. The truth is, this is another huge step of obedience that will bring God’s blessings into our life.

I’ve found that when I come to the place where I can honestly and genuinely pray for my “enemies” and ask God to bless them, it brings healing and peace to my soul. It’s like a medicine, a soothing balm that heals even the deepest emotional wounds. Walking in true forgiveness will close the door to the past and open up doors to a bright, new future.

Stephen forgave, even as he was being stoned to death. Jesus forgave as He hung on a cross for you and me. If someone has hurt or offended you, forgive. Then ask God to bless them. You'll be glad you did.

(Photo courtesy of Morguefile.com and Prawny.)

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Forgiving and blessing our enemies is an act of faith and obedience. via @Andrea Merrell (Click to Tweet.)

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Conditional Forgiveness

By Andrea Merrell

“I’ll forgive her when she apologizes and not before!”

A statement like that is usually born out of the heat of the moment, or a long, festering period of anger and resentment. Even though it’s totally understandable, it’s not healthy or scriptural.

If Jesus had waited on all those who persecuted, tormented, and crucified Him to come and confess their wrongdoing, there would have been no forgiveness. Jesus responded in love and in accordance to His Father’s Word.

The truth is people need love and forgiveness the most when they deserve it the least—even you and me. When Jesus said, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do,” He was teaching us that the ability to pardon the sins of others is an act of faith and sheer obedience. It is not conditional or based on the response of the offender. In fact, it’s not for their benefit … it’s for ours.

God tells us to forgive so we can be forgiven. So how is your forgive-o-meter? Are you putting conditions and unrealistic expectations on others? If you are, or if you’re having trouble getting past a painful situation, think about all God has done for you. Think about the sacrifice Jesus made so all your sins could be washed away by His shed blood. Call to remembrance all the things you have been forgiven for.

God shows each of us love and forgiveness the most when we deserve it the least, and He expects us to do the same.

(Photo courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net/StuartMiles.)

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Have you checked your forgive-o-meter lately? via @AndreaMerrell (Click to Tweet.)

God shows us love and forgiveness the most when we deserve it the least. via @AndreaMerrell (Click to Tweet.)

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