Are you stuck in the past? Do you feel guilty over
something you did and just can’t get past it? Do you carry resentment towards
someone who wronged you? You want to move on, but the resentment keeps raising
its ugly head in your thoughts.
If we are honest with ourselves, we all have hurts, habits, and hang-ups that trap us and keep us looking back to the past instead of looking forward.
Guilt, resentment, and hurt keeps us stuck in the past. These things also keep us from growing and from becoming all God wants us to be. If you want to enjoy your life, if you really want to experience the abundant life of Christ (John 10:10), you’ve got to learn how to let go of these kinds of things that keep us stuck in the past.
There are three things you can do to help you overcome the guilt, hurt, and resentment of the past.
1. Take a moral inventory of your life. Lamentation 3:40 says ‘Let us examine our ways and test them.’
To take full advantage of this inventory you must get away alone and take a large chunk of time. Make sure you have a pen and a piece of paper and write down what you’re feeling guilty about and why you feel you can’t forgive what someone did to you. Express these things honestly and write them down. Writing it down helps you be specific and avoid denying problems.
2. Accept responsibility for your faults. Proverbs 20:27 says ‘The Lord gave us a mind and a conscience. We cannot hide from ourselves.’
Your honesty may lead you to see that healing begins with you. Don’t rationalize, don’t minimize and don’t blame others. Maybe you have been deceiving yourself of why you are feeling guilty, or why you feel hurt so deeply. Look at your list and admit your own faults.
3. Admit your faults to God. 1 John 1:9 says ‘If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Confession means ‘saying the same thing about.’
It means you are saying to God the same thing about your faults – it is sin.
Go through your inventory and say to God ‘You’re right, God, it’s wrong, cleanse me. This will free you from the guilt, the hurt, the hang up, and the un-forgiveness of others. When we confess our faults to God, we can claim His grace and forgiveness. He wants to give you freedom, and He invites you to be honest, trusting that He will be gracious.
Blessings,
If we are honest with ourselves, we all have hurts, habits, and hang-ups that trap us and keep us looking back to the past instead of looking forward.
Guilt, resentment, and hurt keeps us stuck in the past. These things also keep us from growing and from becoming all God wants us to be. If you want to enjoy your life, if you really want to experience the abundant life of Christ (John 10:10), you’ve got to learn how to let go of these kinds of things that keep us stuck in the past.
There are three things you can do to help you overcome the guilt, hurt, and resentment of the past.
1. Take a moral inventory of your life. Lamentation 3:40 says ‘Let us examine our ways and test them.’
To take full advantage of this inventory you must get away alone and take a large chunk of time. Make sure you have a pen and a piece of paper and write down what you’re feeling guilty about and why you feel you can’t forgive what someone did to you. Express these things honestly and write them down. Writing it down helps you be specific and avoid denying problems.
2. Accept responsibility for your faults. Proverbs 20:27 says ‘The Lord gave us a mind and a conscience. We cannot hide from ourselves.’
Your honesty may lead you to see that healing begins with you. Don’t rationalize, don’t minimize and don’t blame others. Maybe you have been deceiving yourself of why you are feeling guilty, or why you feel hurt so deeply. Look at your list and admit your own faults.
3. Admit your faults to God. 1 John 1:9 says ‘If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Confession means ‘saying the same thing about.’
It means you are saying to God the same thing about your faults – it is sin.
Go through your inventory and say to God ‘You’re right, God, it’s wrong, cleanse me. This will free you from the guilt, the hurt, the hang up, and the un-forgiveness of others. When we confess our faults to God, we can claim His grace and forgiveness. He wants to give you freedom, and He invites you to be honest, trusting that He will be gracious.
Blessings,
P.S. Do you ever feel the tension of submitting to the government in things you don’t agree with? Is it ever okay to be disobedient to the governing authorities? What is the government’s responsibility to me as a citizen? You won’t want to miss Independence Sunday at 9:15 and 11:00 as we answer these questions.
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