Have you ever messed up? I know, I know. That’s a rhetorical question. Of course, you’ve made mistakes. We all do. It’s an unchangeable part of our human existence ever since the Fall of Man in Genesis 3. Here’s a better question. Have you ever messed up to the point you can’t seem to let it go? You continually beat yourself up about it. Aha! I’ve done that. Not that long ago, I scheduled dinner plans with friends. Even wrote it on my planner. But the night of, I totally forgot, and my family went out to dinner on our own. Worse. I posted photos on social media. It wasn’t until the next day when I saw my friend that I realized we were supposed to have dinner the night before. I was humiliated! And I couldn’t forgive myself for forgetting our plans.
This was just a simple mistake. Often, we sin in ways that are damaging to our relationship with God and our relationship with others. It’s easy to get hung up on our human fallibleness, and not let go of our mistakes, and instead carry them around on our backs, weighing us down, preventing us from being the Christian God wants us to be.
So, what do we do?
First, seek forgiveness from God. You can’t forgive yourself until you’ve asked Him to forgive you. I John 1:9, says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Second, seek forgiveness from the people you hurt. After receiving God’s forgiveness, now it’s time to ask those whom you may have sinned against to forgive you. Hopefully, you will receive mercy and your relationship restored.
Now, you have God’s forgiveness and others’ forgiveness, but how do you forgive yourself? How do we let go instead of browbeating ourselves? Forgiving ourselves is more about believing the promises of God than it is anything else. I’d like to share with you a few promises from Scripture that when we believe them, we can move on from our mistakes.
- You have an advocate with the Father. 1John 2:1, “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”
- Our sins are put as far as the east is from the west. Psalms 103:12, “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.”
- We’re not perfect. Yet. He’s still working on you. Psalms 138:8, “The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O LORD, [endureth] for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands.”
- God doesn’t remember our sins. Hebrews 10:17, “And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.”
- He casts our sins into the depths of the sea. Micah 7:19, “He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.”
After we recall these promises of God, how do we move on?
- Lay aside every weight. Holding onto regret for sin that God has already forgiven in to carry unnecessary weight that is keeping you from being all you can be. Hebrews 12:1, says, “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset [us], and let us run with patience the race that is set before us…”
- Forget those things which are behind. And reach forth for what is ahead. Stop trying to run while looking over your shoulder. That’s a good way to trip. Put your mistakes behind you and start reaching for the prize still ahead of you. Philippians 3:13-14, says, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but [this] one thing [I do], forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
- Bring your thoughts into captivity. Whenever thoughts of your past wrongs come to mind, cast them down and put them into mind jail. Don’t allow yourself to dwell on them. You know God has forgiven you based on the promises of His Word, so don’t think about things that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God. 2Corinthians 10:5, says, “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ…”
I pray that this devotion has blessed your spirit and given you the wisdom and know-how to forgive yourself when you mess up, and allows you to be all that God wants you to be.
She’s running for governor. He’s a pastor.
Will they risk their lives to keep a secret?
Annie Staten, now known as Kathleen Phillips, has dreamed of pursuing a political career and following in her father’s footsteps. But Richard was a hated man during his tenure as governor and now his enemies will stop at nothing to prevent his daughter from winning the election.
Ryan Whitestone has loved Annie since high school, but his heart is broken by the woman she has become. When the daughter she gave up for adoption comes back into her life, can he help her heal from her pain and remind her of who she used to be?
Will Kathleen be able to forgive herself, put the past behind her, and find love again?
Forgiven Again is the continuing story of No Greater Love.
Gina Holder dreamed of being a writer from her early teen years and lives in Colorado with her husband and daughter. When she’s not homeschooling her daughter or working on her next novel, she enjoys reading, watching movies, cooking, singing, and playing the piano and organ. Her indie published debut novel released in 2017.
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