“Mindless, reactionary acts of forgiveness do not lead to the freedom we long for. The options before us as people desiring to follow Jesus are not just extending forgiveness or withholding it. The only option is to figure out how to extend it in ways that honor our dignity, attend to our wounds, and reflect […]
“Most of us have prayed [the Lord’s Prayer] in some way before. If we’re honest with ourselves, we’ll admit that we might have said the right words but our hearts were praying something altogether different. And understandably so, because forgiveness is a crucifixion.”- Rich Villodas In Chapter 8 (“The Gift of Forgiveness: Honestly Breaking the […]
“Forgiveness is the key that unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hatred. It is a power that breaks the chains of bitterness and the shackles of selfishness.”- Corrie ten Boom, survivor of Ravensbruck concentration camp “I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that Satan might not […]
“Even the most imperfect, messy forgiveness filled with hesitation and resistance is better than letting bitterness have its way with your heart. The sum total of even the smallest inklings and considerations of forgiveness is always better than one moment of full-on bitterness.”- Lysa TerKeurst In Chapter 14 (“Living the Practice of Forgiveness Every Day”), […]
“Humanity without humility makes true forgiveness impossible. Humanity rises up and demands that I be declared the right one, the good one, the victimized one. . . . Humility bows low and claims the greatest victory a human can ever grasp: God’s prize of peace.”- Lysa TerKeurst As Lysa TerKeurst moves on in Chapter 13 […]
Feelings of disillusionment left unattended start to seem like facts about God when our circumstances don’t turn like we believed they would. . . . But then . . . I learned God loves us too much to answer our prayers at any other time than the right time.”- Lysa TerKeurst As Lysa TerKeurst moves […]
“I want them (friends, co-workers, family members) saved, but I am not their Savior. . . . They need Jesus. They need self-control. So I shift from efforts of control to efforts of compassion. Compassion lets me love the person, empathize with their pain, and acknowledge their side of things, even if I don’t agree […]
“Hurt feelings sometimes don’t want to cooperate with holy instructions. That’s why I have to add some of what Jesus did on the cross into this process. . . . It only makes sense that I include Jesus’ shed blood into my act of forgiveness when accomplishing it on my own feels so hard . […]
“For me to move forward, for me to see beyond this current darkness, is between me and the Lord. I don’t need to wait on others to do anything. . . . I simply must obey whatever God is asking of me right now. God has given me a new way to walk. And God […]
Hopeless pursuits are where so many get stuck, stay angry, and void peace right out of their lives. But hope-filled possibilities? That’s where the process of seeing that healing is possible begins. What we look for is what we will see. What we see determines our perspective. And our perspective becomes our reality.”- Lysa TerKeurst […]
“I know what it feels like to have been hurt so deeply that forgiveness feels like a command too cruel for you to consider. Or, it’s a spiritual theory you might think about one day after a lot more time has passed. Or, it’s a topic you’ve been avoiding and don’t care to discuss.”- Lysa […]
“Left to my own deep, deep woundedness, forgiveness can seem offensive, impossible, and one of the quickest ways to compound the unfairness of being wronged. . . . And it’s that exact spot where I like to park, stew, and focus on everyone else’s wrongs, and rally those who agree with me to join in […]