Oops! Your RESIDUE Is Showing!

Forgiveness.

Forgiveness is a very important asset to have when you come to Christ. Now we all know that we have a past and once we give our lives to Christ, we have to go through the forgiving process. Whether it be forgiving those who have hurt us or forgiving ourselves for doing wrong willingly, forgiveness in itself plays a huge part in our lives. Once we give our lives to Christ and forgive those from the past and we accept our stories as our testimonies, we still may run into new people that may offend, accuse, reject, hurt and or persecute us. And as odd as this is going to sound, I've come to realize that for some people (myself included) it can be harder to forgive someone else who is also in Christ. Now don't get me wrong here, if you're someone who is still holding onto things that have happened to you or things that you've done from years ago, then yes it's time to get delivered and let it go fully. I've just noticed that recently, it can be harder to forgive your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. I'm not here to sugar coat anything as you all have come to learn about me, I'm here to give out whatever the Holy Ghost has given to me and I hope it ministers to you because even as I write this out today, it's ministering to me as well. Forgiveness can be easy to do vocally. You can say all day that you forgive whoever came against you but do you wholesomely mean it? You see, if you say that you forgive someone and you give the person and what happened to God, then there should be no signs of residue on you right? Well, in one way, shape, form, or fashion, we have all had our shares in having hidden residues whether it be from different sins to just not liking people because of what they did. But the question at hand is, what happens when the residue is no longer hidden and you're wearing that awful stench everywhere you go. Having resentment against someone who has come for you can be dangerous because at the end of the day, God is seeing how you react in certain situations and sooner or later, you end up exposing yourself. You then receive more backlash than the person who was messing with you in the first place. Sounds unfair doesn't it, well you have to know that not everyone is going at the same pace as you are, some are ahead of you while some are behind and some are even right next to you. The key thing is, God is looking to see how YOU react! 

Now today, I was reading Proverbs 27 and this part (Proverbs 27:3) stuck out to me: "A stone is heavy and sand is weighty, but the resentment caused by a fool is even heavier" It stuck out to me because it began to show me how foolish I would be when I used to hold people's past over their heads and yes I'm talking about people who have said things about me in the present time. I used to hold what they said about me about two seasons ago over their heads as if they just did it yesterday and yet here I am looking foolish when they've already been set free.(Now it's not on me whether or not they stay free, I just have to keep forgiveness in my heart.) So who am I to hold that over their heads every time I see them? Doesn't sound like a good believer does it? Well I thank God for delivering me in that area and I thank Him for correcting me in private and for the times He's had to do it in public, I have no problem with sharing this to you all because I've got to share what I've been through so that someone who's reading this can have hope that they have a way out of resentment and residue towards a fellow brother or sister in Christ! The past doesn't have to be just years ago, it can simply be just yesterday so please keep this in mind as you continue to read. Now then, I am fully aware of when people talk too much but there have been times where I should've prayed about it more than just worrying or pondering on it. The enemy desires for us to view people in the same damaged way so that we can hold grudges and not forgive, why? Because he wants us to live in bondage and to turn to the darkness and or isolate ourselves and become weak and weak minded because he knows that through TRUE fellowship we gain our strength back and through forgiveness we are able to move forward and not stand stagnant.

As I have stated earlier, it can be harder to forgive your fellow brother and sister in Christ and here is why. When you come to Christ and you become a new creation, in the beginning you may be expecting that everyone will be happy-go-lucky all the time and everyone will be your friend and you'll all live happily ever after. Well, people are still people and some of them still have things that they need deliverance from and same goes for you and me for none of us are perfect. (Don't use that line as an excuse to do wrong) You see, some people in Christ still operate with a high school mentality and it's not just the youth, it's also people who have been in Christ for a very long time, they just rather not admit it. So let's just say that a fellow brother or sister has started a rumor or quarrel towards you and it ends up messing with not only your mind but it begins to mess with how others view you as well. You cannot fall into the trap of holding grudges and resentment towards them, of course, it does hurt 20 times more than it would hurt before we got saved. I'm saying this because when someone in the Body of Christ has malicious intentions towards you, it cuts deep because we are all supposed to be on the same team. The thing is, there is strength in numbers so when the enemy begins to see more and more people coming to Christ, he finds his way in through a crack in order to bring corruption, confusion, division and discord within the Body of Christ. When this happens, you have got to realize that it's not the person operating against you, it's whatever it is they let in. Whether it be jealousy, lust, accusation, stress, frustration, and the list just goes on and on. So even though it may be hard and it hurts, you have to forgive them and rebuke any residue that might try to hang on and cause you to live in bondage and view that particular person in a way that shows their shortcomings. This bondage can hold you back from praising God for them when He works a miracle in their lives.

How do you know if residue is still lurking around within your heart? It's actually pretty simple. When the person who came against you is TRULY trying to get better and your FLESH is still hesitant to even show love then your heart is still harboring the images of what that person has done to you. There's a difference between using discernment with caution and just straight up not loving someone because of unforgiveness. But when Jesus spoke to the Pharisees in Matthew 22:34-37 (who were trying to outwit Him by asking Him what the greatest commandment was) He said this: You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is EQUALLY IMPORTANT: Love your neighbor as you love YOURSELF. Now then if you're supposed to love your neighbor as you love yourself then how are you still trying to hold onto the wrong they have caused for you. You have to fix and wipe away the cracks within your heart and mind and truly forgive and let go. Ask God to reveal YOURSELF to YOU! Now, that doesn't mean that you have to be as close to the person as you once were but there will come a time where God is going to play your whole life before your eyes and you'll have to tell Him why you didn't WHOLESOMELY forgive and love them as you love yourself. As you have to come to learn, not forgiving someone is dangerous and it can open cracks within your walk with Christ. Yes, sometimes you're going to have to go through deliverance if the root of it is too deep but deliverance is a good thing, it's the key to freedom and it's up to YOU to STAY free. Most importantly you've got to have a repenting mindset, not just because you want to get out of trouble but because you never know what you might have done, said, and or thought that wasn't pleasing to God's will. Repent daily even if your thought was for 2 seconds, repent! You also know that residue is still lurking if every time you hear a word about haters, forgiving, and or enemies, your mind goes straight to that person and you shout your amens and hallelujuahs instead of asking God if the word is for YOU. Usually people who do this only end up exposing themselves when they make a big deal out of it. Not only do they expose themselves but the very ones who come to their minds are usually the ones who God will send to bless them but because of pettiness and gossip, they've missed their blessing. Again, I don't sugar coat and I can talk about it because I've been there. I've been staying free from it though and I want others to get free from unforgiveness and stay free from it as well! Keep this in mind the next time you are hesitant to forgive:

"Who am I not to forgive someone who God has already forgiven?"

As Always: Stay Blessed & Encouraged