G - Grace

God is merciful and full of grace. If we have been given so much, what right do we have to not give this to someone else? It’s not easy though. There are people who can really rub us the wrong way and that whole forgive and forget thing – good luck! We can forgive but forgetting is nearly impossible because we were hurt, it’s hanging on to the hurt that we don’t want to do. Remembering the one who wronged us is necessary, so we don’t get hurt again but holding on to the hurt only keeps us in bondage to it and can create bitterness. It’s important to forgive, because forgiveness keeps us from growing bitter.

Forgiveness is a gift we give the other person who has wronged us, they can do whatever they want with that gift – even toss it in the trash if they want to or set it aside for 20 years. What they do with it is between them and God. Offering forgiveness is between us and God. It takes grace to forgive, and it takes grace to show empathy. Ultimately the person off the hook is us. 

When we watch a movie or a TV show where someone has been wronged, we get to see both sides of the story, why the person hurt the other and how the hurt person handles it. In real life we don’t get to see why that person hurt us and sometimes we truly have no idea why. This is where empathy comes in, putting ourselves in their shoes to understand why. For many years I was a lay counselor, and we were taught to help our clients understand the WHY in order to know HOW to change. As the counselor I was only privy to one side of the story so all I could do was help my client see their part, how they handled the hurt. We don’t always get to know why and in that case, we have to choose to say, “Ok how do I let go?” Acknowledging that it happened, see where we might have played a part (and ask for forgiveness for our part) keeps us from getting stuck in the trauma. I have to add here, I am not talking about abuse– there is no excuse for abuse! Forgiveness is necessary to heal so that the person or event no longer has a hold on us. When we release the pain through grace and forgiveness, we do not allow bitterness to grow. I understand that abusers do not deserve to be forgiven and that’s where grace comes in. Grace is not getting what we deserve which is God’s forgiveness. Grace therefore is the supernatural power of God upon our lives to do something we could never do in and of ourselves. 

Understanding that hurt people hurt people is a very empathetic statement. Super hard for sure, but it does help us see that maybe the one doing the hurting has some really deep hurts to work through. We cannot change them or change the situation; we can only change how we behave. We are each accountable for our own thoughts and behaviors and that is our part in the whole matter. It’s not easy to choose grace, to put ourselves in someone else’s proverbial shoes, but it sure beats growing bitter and staying stuck in trauma. Growing up is hard and with the Lord’s strength anything is possible!

The lesson: I do not deserve God’s grace, so how can I show grace to others?

G od’s
R edemption
A t
C hrist’s
E xpense


Pouring hope, 
Nen ♥