Forgiving Others

by Miriam Caldwell | More from this Blogger

Have you ever had a grudge? Have you nursed it for a long time and allowed it to fester and grow? When I was in fourth grade, I got in a fight with my best friend Beth. And was it a fight. For some reason both of our parents were not home that night, but the neighborhood parents called and talked to our parents about it. You see we fought by yelling and screaming at each other, but we also punched, scratched and pulled hair. We lived on opposite ends of the block, and it went back and forth between the two houses a few times.

The thing that I remember the most is the awful dark feeling that followed me around for weeks after the fight. At school the girls all picked sides. It seemed like one person couldn't talk to one of us without picking a side. I remember the anger that kept on building and building and building inside of me. I was absolutely miserable the entire time it lasted. I honestly don't know how we resolved the fight, but we did.

A grudge is a lot like that. The more we hold on to it, the more we think about it, the darker that we feel inside. The bigger the offense seems to be. The scriptures teach us to forgive each other. We are counseled to forgive everyone even if they don't ask for our forgiveness. It is best to work on doing this as soon as we can, instead of nursing the grudge so that it grows bigger.

One of the things that helps me to do this is to pray about my feelings. I find that when I can't concentrate because I am upset about something, that it is essential that I sit down and pray right then. I pray for peace, and understanding. I pray that I can let those feelings go. It might not happen right away, but as I continue to pray to be able to forgive over the next few days, I find that I am able to.

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Forgiveness

Choosing Not to Take Offense

Learn more about Miriam Caldwell

Miriam is a SAHM mom of three children. She has a daughter who is seven, and two sons, four and two. She loves being a parent and spending time with her children.

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