I have not seen many hubs on Forgiveness. I'm sure it's because this is a tough subject. I'm going to try and attempt it.

I could'nt forgive for the longest time. I was eaten up inside and these "things" had power over me, in me and was controlling my life! I woke up with them everyday! I was so tired of this weight I was carrying. I had an injustice done to me and it clung to me for years.

I was not responsible for the injustice done, but I was responsible for allowing the emotional impact it was having on me. Once I came to an understanding of the person responsible for the injustice i was able to forgive them. I had to look deeper and realize I wasn't the cause, therefore I was no longer effected by it, therefore I was freed from the injustice. Praise God!

So now that I am freed from the injustice and I have forgiven, how do I proceed in having a relationship with the person who is responsible for the injustice. Well God says to certainly love them as he loves us but as the Bible clearly states in 2 Corinthians 6:14 "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers, for what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? Now Verse 17 "Therefore come out from them and be seperate". We are to not let their strongholds become ours. You see, this is not about them, it's about us. We are to no longer carry or be burdened with resentment, anger or revenge. Vengence is mine saith the lord!

So does this mean we are to sit back and gloat? To relish that God will give them what they deserve? Absolutly NOT! This is the same as unforgiveness! We need to have compassion. We are to love our brothers and to pray for their restoration in Jesus Christ so that they may be restored. God loves them too. That is why Jesus said on the cross when he was crucified, God forgive them, for they know not what they do!

God clearly wants us "to be purified from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God" 2 Corinthians 7:1.

I guess God had his way of approaching these "things" I could'nt let go of. I knew it was going to take a miracle and that miracle came from God.

It took me a very long time to realize that I was the one who was suffering because I was the one who was taking on something that clearly didn't belong to me., I had to let it go. I had to let go of the hurt and anger it was causing me. I was the one who was stuck in unforgiveness therefore dividing my relationship with God.

You see, forgiveness is not forgetting an injustice done. It is the understanding that allows us to set aside the emotional impact of that injustice pertaining to ourselves. When we no longer hold these emotions and have understanding for the person, we have forgiven them. We have come to an understanding that everyone, including ourselves needs time to grow and to learn, that we all need to be more gentle and understanding of where others are in "their" life. We have all been there, haven't we? No one is exactly where anyone else is in life. God will and is working in "all" our lives.

So many struggle with thinking they are to forget the injustice. That they cannot be forgiven till they can forget. Not true! Forgetting is not possible. Our minds store everything. This is a fact we cannot change. Learning to except is something we can do.

I came to know, for a fact, that we cannot do it alone. I was doing it alone and that wasn't working. I left God out, therefore I suffered the consequences. Since I have chosen to let God in I am more at peace because i realize now that my focus needs to be on him.....no matter what!

I had heard someone say that "while our focus is on God, he will take care of our troubles". I didn't know how true that was until I experianced it for myself. Once I started putting my focus on God, he was taking care of my troubles. It was a miracle!

Unforgiveness is a divider, not only between family and friends but between us and God. Forgiveness is the most unselfish thing we can do. In Matthew 6:14 and 15 clearly states, "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly father will also forgive you. but if you do not forgive men their sins, your father will not forgive your sins".

I basically allowed something else to have control over my life and my happiness and peace of mind and in the end I was alone with me and unforgiveness. We were partners in a crime, a crime against God. You see unforgiveness is a violation of God's word. It is a destructive attitude. I wound up resenting the very ones I loved and life was meaningless.

I had to learn that you not only need to be forgiving of others but we also need to be forgiving of ourselves and realize that "no one" is perfect and we can't be perfected until we are perfected thru God. I found out the hard way because it took me forever to come to grips with it. I wasted precious time! But in the end God knew when I'd be ready to give it up and allow him to perfect me, to give me the spirit of forgiveness and to remember how many times has he forgiven me.