My Journey to Forgiveness pt. 6

I thought and thought about the beautiful woman who sat on the side of my bed for days. I thought about what she said. I had to forgive. I had to ask God to help me forgive. I had to somehow come before the throne of the Almighty God. I had not come to His throne in a long time. I went to church for the first time in over a year. My mom was so very happy. As I entered the sanctuary, tears just automatically flowed from my eyes. I dismissed them as "over active hormones". As I sat next to my mom, the preacher began to speak. The title of his sermon, was How to Forgive...Why You Must Forgive. My mouth hit the floor. I knew God was speaking directly to me in this sermon. As I listened to him speak, one thing got my attention. He said, when you hold on to the anger, pain, bitterness and hatred for the person who wronged you, you have given them control of your life. You are the one who is not enjoying their live. You are not happy. You are truly, truly miserable. Trust me, they are truly enjoying theirs and not thinking twice about what they did to you. So, why are you letting someone like this control your life? I thought about those words which pierced my very soul. Why was I letting my boyfriend and my best friend control my life? Why? The more I thought, the tears came flooding down my cheeks. The weight of the burdens I was carrying were so heavy. I felt as if my chest was about to rip open and pour out everything. He closed with these words: Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive." Colossians 3:12-13 It was now time for Altar Call. He said, "anyone who is burdened whose heart is full of pain, bitterness, anger and hate come forward and let the power of God cleanse your heart and soul. Let Him make you whole again". I did not realize I had left my seat. I did not realize that I had dropped to my knees. I did not realize I was crying to the point my whole body was shaking. I could not speak. The next thing I knew I was laid out on the altar asking God to please remove this heaviness from me. Please set me free Lord! Set me free! Forgive me Father! Forgive me! The minister put his hand upon my head and said a prayer. When He was finished I still laid there. My mom came up to me and tried to get me up. I would not let her. I was in the presence of God and I did not want to go. I could feel my body become lighter. I could feel the peace overflowing within my soul. I could feel God's arms wrapping around me. The small voice said, "you are free my child, you are free. I will make you whole again. Depend on me my child, I shall set you free".

God was setting me free. God was helping me to forgive...........

Grace and Peace