Step Into the Future: 5 Resolutions For The Best 2024 Resolution TWO

      

Resolution # 2.

Accept Forgiveness, Forgive Others, AND Yourself!

Receive Forgiveness

Yesterday I covered what it looks like to TRULY have a fresh start! An important part of your fresh start is to experience the joy of forgiveness. When I was new to Christ, I was amazed that Jesus would literally give me a new start in life and repair my connection to God. Jesus wasn’t going to fix me up, but He literally made me new. And that goes for anyone who accepts Him into their life!

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." 2 Cor. 5:17

"All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God." 2 Cor. 5:18-20

Forgiveness is much easier to do when you have Christ in your life! When you understand the forgiveness you’ve received from Jesus, you’re able to extend the same forgiveness to others. God will empower you with grace to forgive!

Extend Forgiveness

Starting 2024 with a spirit of forgiveness is critical and really goes hand in hand with Resolution # 1 of letting go of the past. Jesus said He cannot forgive you if you don’t forgive others.

"For if you forgive others their trespasses [their reckless and willful sins], your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others [nurturing your hurt and anger with the result that it interferes with your relationship with God], then your Father will not forgive your trespasses." Mt 6:14-15

It's a very sobering truth that’s worth examining our hearts. Often, forgiveness is something that must happen daily, and it’s a choice you can make! If forgiving someone has been difficult, you may have to repeatedly forgive them each time the enemy brings up old memories. There’s spiritual discipline involved with forgiveness, but it's also very supernatural. What I mean by this, is that God is the one who gives us the grace to do something we can't do on our own….but at the same time, we must make a choice and use self-control to harness our emotions about the matter. 1 Corinthians 10:5 describes this spiritual discipline well:

"We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ."

Sometimes, the enemy wants to bring up a bad memory, hurt, or offense and put it on replay in your mind. This can be something that was done wrongly to you, something someone did that was unkind, an offense, etc. When that happens, you must first ask yourself if you’ve truly forgiven that person. But if you have, and the enemy keeps trying to bring it up, you must cast down that memory and continue to keep a heart posture of purity and forgiveness. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you with this, and He will! Read over Matthew 5-let the Word wash and correct you!

Forgive Yourself

Forgiveness involves more than forgiving others, it includes forgiving yourself too. Did you make some choices in 2023 that you wish you didn’t? Did you fail to accomplish certain goals? Don’t let the enemy beat you up over things out of your control. In our culture today, it’s easy to feel inadequate. Give yourself grace and forgive yourself if you feel like you may have missed the mark. If you know you need to deal with sin in your life, repent and receive God's forgiveness! If God is nudging you to apologize to someone, have that tough conversation, or make things right in some way, then do it. Making restitution and repairing your wrongs can be a healing process in forgiving yourself. We can’t change the past, but we can always be obedient to move forward in our fresh start with God.  But if you're not dealing with sin, don't let the enemy cause you to walk in shame or condemnation over little mistakes, unmet goals, or other petty things that, in all honesty, you are trying to do well! Condemnation comes from the devil and causes you to focus on yourself and your sin more than Christ. Condemnation also won't lead you to Christ, but it will keep stuck in your current spiritual condition. This is not from God. If the Holy Spirit convicts you, He's going to lead you to Jesus and cause you to be transformed by repentance and rightly restored to God! Forgive yourself and walk in freedom today!

This declaration is taken from Brenda Kunnemen’s book “The Daily Decree”:

Say this with me:

"Today we declare that you receive the strength and ability to forgive every person who has hurt, betrayed, mistreated, and wronged you. May the overwhelming power of God’s forgiveness rise up within. We decree that every painful memory is erased from your soul. May the burden of every offense and transgression committed against you be released from your shoulders. We prophesy that you are liberated from the stronghold of unforgiveness that would interfere with your prayers and rob your peace. We say that you are able to set aside the misdeeds of others and move forward into your bright future. We speak this and say you are able to freely say, “I forgive them in Jesus' Name!”