seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from China
seen from T1
seen from Türkiye
seen from Brazil
seen from United States
seen from Ukraine
seen from Russia
seen from Japan
seen from Singapore
seen from Poland
seen from Japan
seen from Kyrgyzstan
seen from United States
seen from T1
seen from China
seen from Malaysia
You decide…
“One day, or Day One? You decide!” (Paulo Coelho) That was Pastor Freed’s quote of the day in his blog, Jack’s Winning Words, today. He used it to discuss pursuing one’s goals and dreams for tomorrow. To me it seemed to pair well with another quote that I found and saved recently – “No matter what troubles have befallen you or what difficulties you have caused yourself or others, with love…
View On WordPress
2 Corinthians 2 - Pleasing Aroma
2 Corinthians 2 – Pleasing Aroma
Read 2 Corinthians 2
In Hebrew culture, hundreds of years before this was written, there was a prevailing understanding that our actions, as well as our prayers, rose up before God in the same way the smoke rose from the fires of a sacrifice. When we love God and love our neighbors, our actions are a pleasing aroma to Him. However, in the case of Israel, when the turned away from God, even the…
View On WordPress
Forgiveness.
In Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham one great lesson that should have been learned was the act of forgiveness. After breaking the vase, Anjali made a wonderful speech about how her father always said that a person who forgives has a big heart. Thinking about that right now I am hoping that it had some kind of effect on people, but forgiveness is never the easiest thing to do.
Up until about a few months ago I couldn’t really grasp the idea of forgiving people. To me it just seemed so absurd. “Why should I forgive people for what they did? That just means it is okay and it isn’t. It most certainly is NOT okay! They should know that.” That is the mentality I was living by. For a while it worked. Holding grudges against people and making sure I didn’t forgive them helped me because I felt by doing that I wouldn’t be making the same mistake over and over again. A person betrays me? I wouldn’t even think twice about being okay with it because I wouldn’t want that to happen to me again. But did that really make sense? Does holding a grudge make ANY sense? Does forgiveness simply mean that you forgive a person for what they did? I may have had a different answer before, but thank goodness I don’t have the same mentality as I used to.
See, the act of forgiveness DOES mean it is okay. The definition doesn’t change, but what it defines does. We have all been through so many screwed up situations that are unforgettable, right? Right. What I learned is that remembering and holding onto it often leaves us unable to live peacefully. There is a quote that says to forgive not for the other person’s piece of mind, but for yours. Which is true. When you don’t forgive someone you won’t ever be at peace with yourself. Now, if you’re like how I was, you’ll automatically object to that. Your objection IS wrong though; subconsciously it is going to affect you. The things that happen in our life, good or bad, and the decisions we make directly affect us whether we realize it or not. There is no escaping that. So, one reason to forgive is for you. It’s so that you can move on from what had happened and not have to look at something as a grudge anymore. Don’t be the person who sees someone they don’t like because of an incident that happened months or even years ago. It will upset you in some way. You WILL be affected. Stop. Really. It IS okay because you WILL be okay. It's okay because there's not rational reasoning behind why it wouldn't be. It will seize to exist if you let yourself stop thinking about it.
One thing I never understood is the act of talking behind someone else’s back, and not in the way where it shouldn't be done (although it really isn't necessary at all). Every single person has done it to SOME extent. If you think you haven’t that is probably because you do it often in the “sweetest” way possible. We all have had something to say about someone else whether it was a friend, a colleague, our significant other, or a family member. But when you find out someone is talking about you, what do you do? Be honest, you get mad and you just cannot forgive them for what they did. Right? But who’s to say you have never said one bad thing about them? Who’s to say you never said one bad thing about anyone? We all make the same kind of stupid mistakes. Talk it out, and when you have a problem with someone else or vice versa make sure you talk it out with each other. Don’t be afraid to be confrontational because it’s a lot more honest. Everybody is dishonest in one innocent way or another, but that still doesn’t mean it is okay. It’s only a mistake once.
People often are too stubborn to understand that forgiveness can mean many things. It can mean, “It is not okay what you did, but I’m going to let it go because it is not worth the energy” or it can mean “I forgive you because people make mistakes.”
We all have made mistakes before. We’ve all begged to be forgiven, and we all HAVE been forgiven. Think about it, if you haven’t, where would you be now? Who would your friends be? Who would YOU be? Before you decide to hold that grudge think about that. Think about how you would feel if you were in that person’s position. Think about how it would affect you if you just kept throwing people away. You wouldn’t be with the people who make you who you are. You wouldn’t be the person who makes you you. I know I have been a lot more peaceful living with the mentality that I live with now. I’m not as angry at people nor am I bothered by it. Always remember, you don’t have to forgive someone for them but for you.
The world is already hard enough with the life we live. Don’t make it any harder for you.
I forgive all past experiences... I do not have to know how to forgive. All I have to do is be willing to forgive. The Universe will take care of the how.
Louise L. Hay
"Forgive and forget. That's what they say. It's good advice, but it's not very practical. When someone hurts us, we want to hurt them back. When someone wrongs us, we want to be right. Without forgiveness, old scores are never settled…old wounds never heal. And the most we can hope for, is that one day we'll be lucky enough to forget" - Grey's Anatomy
Over the past few weeks I have watched Grey's Anatomy from Season 1 through Season 6. Each episode starts and ends with some incredible dialogue. This is just one quote of many that really speak to my heart. I am great at forgiving and terrible at forgetting.
