Break Those Chains!
When someone wrongs us, it can be really hard to move past the anger. Sometimes the hurt is so big it seems unforgivable. Sometimes being angry feels good — we feel like the person doesn't deserve our forgiveness. Sometimes they haven't even asked for it.
But if you think about it, most of the time those same things apply to our own sins. And still, Jesus gave His life so that we could be forgiven. When we withhold forgiveness from others, the anger and bitterness that build up inside are just one more way satan can come between us and the love of our Heavenly Father. They become a chain — a burden that holds us back from what our God desires for us.
And so, here are 10 powerful quotes about forgiveness to help you (and me!) break free from those chains!
1. "We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies." — Martin Luther King, Jr.
2. "The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong." ― Mahatma Gandhi, All Men are Brothers: Autobiographical Reflections
3. "Forgiveness has nothing to do with absolving someone's offense or betrayal. It has everything to do with relieving oneself of the burden of being a victim–letting go of the pain and transforming oneself from victim to survivor." ― C.R. Strahan
4. "Few suffer more than those who refuse to forgive themselves." ― Mike Norton, Fighting For Redemption
5. "Forgiving isn't something you do for someone else. It's something you do for yourself. It's saying, ‘You're not important enough to have a stranglehold on me.' It's saying, ‘You don't get to trap me in the past. I am worthy of a future. I'm moving on to peace and happiness.' " - Jodi Picoult
6. "Because forgiveness is like this: a room can be dank because you have closed the windows, you've closed the curtains. But the sun is shining outside, and the air is fresh outside. In order to get that fresh air, you have to get up and open the window and draw the curtains apart." - Desmond Tutu
7. "The wisdom of forgiving : It does not mean giving people the license to hurt you over and over again. It is simply an act of releasing the pain others may have caused and remembering never to let them take away your PEACE again." - Dodinsky
8. “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you." — Lewis B. Smedes
9. "Mistakes are always forgivable, if one has the courage to admit them." — Bruce Lee
10. "True forgiveness is when you can say, Thank you for that experience.'" ― Oprah Winfrey
Sometimes letting go can be really hard, especially when the hurt is so big. I hope these quotes have helped inspire you, and that you find yourself one step closer to giving forgiveness to someone in your life.
"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you don’t forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." Matthew 6:14-15
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h/t: Little Things
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