Christian Photographers Community

Hello To Everyone!

As always I miss yawl when I am not able to come and visit. I wanted to share with you a little bit about what I am learning on the topic of forgiveness.

I have recently been on the "outs" with a dear friend and though I thought I was being pretty big about it, I felt the need to talk and share as we had in the past but was unrelenting about being "first" to give in. Now you would think we were two teenagers with our miffed attitudes and ignoring each other even in the same prayer groups and such online.

I tell you, as the Lord kept convicting me of my silly attitude, I dug right in....thankful that I never gossiped but not giving an inch in my attitude. I had taken on an air of being "Wronged"
and was not going to give it up soon, figuring I had been hurt enough in life. I told God
how "tired" I was of always apologizing and threw in a couple of examples of past hurts when
I had been injured unfairly. I felt I had dibs on pain and was going to see it through.

Well, tonight this friend reached out first to me. Let me tell you, I feel no triumph in the fact that I held out so long, and as I answered her sweet letter, I thought of my brother who never forgave me and died with his anger intact. How can we see others faults so easily and
never see our own? I want to share that God has thoroughly convicted and chastised me
and I love His chastitement because it is filled with love.

Of course I am going to ask my friend to forgive me. She has suffered a loss or two herself since our breakup and I hope that we can regain our friendship. I also feel free today because there is healing in forgiveness, whether we forgive ourselves or another.

I honestly thought I was justified in feeling the way I did. I am remembering also that my mother had to deal with forgiveness on her deathbed. I do not ever want to carry it that far.
Please pray that I will continue to grow stronger in the Lord and adhere to the things He
keeps trying to teach me.

I am humbled and happy and have learned a great lesson.
If I sound rambly...its because I am simply happy!!!

Thankfully
Zee

Bless you, Zee ... God is so gracious toward us when we least deserve it.  I understand all that you are saying (and all that you are NOT saying, as well) ... You have learned a valuable lesson here, and I trust the Lord of love will enrich your relationships and restore what the cancor worm and locust have eaten from your life ... He is faithful... Thank you for posting.

Jane

Zee is is so wonderful when we can mend broken relationships. I will be  praying for you dear Sister.

Sisters Jane and Marilyn


Thank you for your prayers and comments! I believe that when God has shown us a better
way that we should by all means...share it!
Even today I feel lighter and we know that God gets the glory while we get the victory in
Jesus!  My friend called me and we picked up where we left off, decided to let the
whole thing go and I was further embaressed to find that she too had experienced several
losses in her life and I was not there for her.

In a matter of three months we have both had deaths of close friends and family and there
have been some times that we should have been sharing absolute miracles and praises for
what God was doing in our lives. We have both had trouble with real estate and property and
could have leaned on each other.

Now, I am not at all second guessing God in all of this, because the absence did convict
our hearts and cement our friendship further, and a great lesson has been learned.
We are not promised tomorrow and if we love someone, they need to know about it
TODAY....not when there is nothing left but tears and regret.

I would like to change the color of my font and a lot of other things on this message but
Ive not read the try out page which is only my fault. Totally chicken and believe that it is
entirely too hard for me to navigate.

I know, I know...I will go there and learn and I could do some of the fancy shmancy things
you all do! My messages are soooo plain and BORING!

Love you all
In Christ
The plainly written Zenobia

Zee, praise the Lord!

I carried a hurt around for more than 20 years. How amazing, when the person who had wronged me and I finally got togehter (he lived several hundred miles away, so a face to face meeting was not just an every day occurrence), I realized my errors, and apologized first to God and then to him.

What cleansing I felt!

Thanks Ruth for your reply and God bless you!

Isnt it something the way we feel cleansed and the weight of the "thing" that has bound us is gone forever?

My friend lives in Texas and I live in Minnesota but the geographical distance was nothing in comparison to the way my heart felt in trying to keep this anger going. I told myself that the
anger was justified and you know, the enemy will agree with us. The enemy will also goad us into the memory of other instances when we have been wronged.

The trick is that we would forever live in self condemnation and the justifiable ( according to us)
spirit of offense.

What a waste of Gods valuable time and our own. If I really want to hearken up old memories
I would do well to remember the times when I have done others wrong and judged and
been a tale bearer, but we never think of those things.

I am praying that those who have not been able to forgive...wherever they are...that they
will ask God and whomever they have been hurt by, for forgiveness.

Now, speaking plainly...there are some people to whom we should never re-connect in
the physical. I have an ex husband who beat me mercilessly for years, and though I have
forgiven him, it would be by Gods leading that we would ever reunite. He is still a drunk
and has a new wife, whom he still is abusive to, but I am just using that as an example.

Still, we must forgive. There is so much joy and happiness and healing in doing so.

In Christ
Zenobia

Thanks for all this about forgiveness, Zee.  It's God's wonderful grace operating in our hearts when we're able to forgive.  Thank You, God.  Now your friendship with that person will probably be deeper and stronger than it otherwise might have been!  Oh thank Him for growth!  Look what He has to work with!  We don't grow easily!

Zeebers, thank you for sharing all this with us, and being so transparent.  I have been blessed just by reading your posts.  Blessings to you, dear one!