” Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.” Colossians 3:13-14 NLT
Holding a grudge can be detrimental to your own life. Harboring anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, resentment, or other negative feelings long after someone has done something to hurt you.
How do you respond when you are offended and somebody has over stepped their boundaries? Perhaps a close friend or relative has gossiped about you. Maybe it is a rumor or could it be true. When you find out your heart begins to race, your blood starts to boil. Negative feelings and emotions begin to get the best of you and your heart begins to get hard and your stressed out and angry. So you get tempted to get mad and try to get even. You cut off that friend, relative, or coworker. “I’ll show them!”
Is this reaction or response the best solution? Grudges have held hostage many a family feuds and close friendships. What does God think?
“Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Col.3:13.
God has a different attitude so why not have the same attitude. Let’s face it believers are human and families can be complicated. Paul wrote to the Colossian church because they had issues! In fact most of the churches he wrote to has problems. This grieves the heart of God. A grudge can stop the flow of God’s love in our life if we allow offenses and grudges build a wall between us.
Forgiveness is not easy, especially how deep you have been hurt. Or maybe you are the person who offended or over stepped your boundaries. How many best friends have been destroyed because of their girlfriend or boyfriend slept with their partner?
Forgiveness is a process and not an instant I’m sorry, or let’s move on. Forgivess is instant at the cross of Christ . Paul encourages us to forgive and not hate. Matter of fact he tells us to clothe ‘put on’ God’s love. Let the Lord take control of the situation and don’t allow a grudge destroy you spiritually, mentally, emotionally, or even physical the offense to kill you. Love is not a feeling as we have been conditioned but an act of our will. God’s love brings unity not division. Releasing whatever grudge you hold to Christ will release you from anger, bitterness. unforgiveness and more.
Pray-Ask the Lord to help you through this process, because God is in the business of reconciliation.
Pray for those who violated or offended you
Pray for God’s peace not the world’s peace to reside in your heart.
“And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.” Colossians 3:15 NLT
Greetings! My name is Andy Provitola and I live in New England on the south shore between Boston and the beautiful Cape Cod region.
The purpose of my blogging and writing is to encourage you in your journey here on planet earth. Life is full of pressing issues and problems and my desire is to discover a place for peace, hope, healing, and contentment. I am a follower of Jesus Christ – God’s one and only Son of God and discovered these truths along my own personal journey.
Having discovered a personal relationship with God the Father through Jesus Christ does not mean I have to be religious to attain the rewards of heaven. The fact is God provides grace for us and accepts us as we are in His image. In other words, we cannot attain heaven or life eternal on our own, but by God’s loving grace and no merit of our own.
My goal is to continue to find a balance of life from a spiritual and practical perspective with a purpose to please and glorify God in all that I do because of His ‘Gift of Grace’.
God is not transcendent and so far away that he is out of reach with humanity. God desires that His presence lives within us and not just in the galaxies and the universe. Experiencing the unconditional love of God has been so rewarding and while discovering the truth and purpose for my life. Moving forward in this life is not a sprint, but a marathon when it comes to this race here on earth.
I am blogging because I find it is a good way to connect in a much more effective and efficient way when it comes to communicating and interacting with with people that I do not know. Blogging and writing challenges me and also stretches me specifically in my thoughts, my mind, my emotions, and my spiritual life to live a vertical relation with God and a horizontal relationship with others.
There will be a variety of topics and subjects to address including youth, young adults, family, singles, seniors, relationships, etc. Some of the topics will include God’s creation and power, depression, loneliness, suicide, hope, healing, setbacks, financial matters, business, stress, anxiety, care, encouragement, and so much more
I would like to connect with all walks of life, ethnicity, culturally, other religions, socio-economics, and more
I am currently writing a book and several memoirs about my own life and journey . The journey begins at a young age growing up in Malden, Massachusetts, specifically Maplewood Square to where I am today. I became paralyzed from the waist down as a senior in high school and I share how my life changed for the better!
“But I do not consider my life as something of value or dear to me, so that I may [with joy] finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus. To testify faithfully of the good news of God’s [precious undeserved] grace [which makes us free of guilt of sin and grants us eternal life]. Acts 20:24 Amplified Version
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