🌿 When Forgiveness Feels Hard

This week, I found myself thinking a lot about forgiveness.

Forgiveness can be really hard, especially when someone has hurt you deeply. Sometimes the pain is so real that the thought of forgiving the person feels almost impossible.

I know because I've been there.

🤍 A Little of My Story

There was someone in my life who hurt me deeply. I felt betrayed, and the pain in my heart was difficult to carry. Forgiving that person was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do.

For a while, I carried the hurt with me.

But I knew that I didn't want bitterness and unforgiveness to take over my heart. I wanted to have a heart that could still love, even after being hurt.

So I started praying and asking God to help me forgive.

I also started writing in my journal.

I wrote about my feelings. I wrote about the pain. I wrote things I couldn't always say out loud. My journal became a safe place where I could be honest with God and with myself.

And then I started doing something very simple.

I would look at myself in the mirror and say:

“I forgive you.”

At first, I didn't necessarily feel it.

But I kept saying it.

Again and again.

“I forgive you.”

Little by little, something started changing in my heart.

God was helping me.

🌸 Forgiveness Didn't Mean It Didn't Hurt

I learned that forgiveness doesn't mean pretending that what happened didn't hurt.

It doesn't mean saying that what someone did was okay.

And it doesn't mean you have to forget what happened or put yourself back into a situation that isn't healthy for you.

For me, forgiveness meant releasing the pain I had been carrying and allowing God to heal my heart.

The more I surrendered it to Him, the easier it became to let go.

Forgiveness didn't erase what happened.
But it helped me stop letting what happened control my heart.

🙏 What God Has Taught Me

Jesus teaches us about the importance of forgiveness. We have received forgiveness from God, and He calls us to extend forgiveness to others.

That doesn't mean forgiveness is always easy.

Sometimes forgiveness is a process.

Sometimes you have to pray about it more than once.

Sometimes you have to remind yourself again and again:

“I choose to forgive.”

And that's okay.

If you're struggling to forgive someone today, don't feel like you have to force yourself to feel completely different overnight.

Start with a prayer.

Start with one small step.

Give the hurt to God.

And ask Him to work in your heart.

Because sometimes healing happens little by little.

🌿 A Gentle Reminder

Maybe someone hurt you.

Maybe someone betrayed you.

Maybe you're carrying something that nobody else knows about.

I want you to know that God sees it.

You can be honest with Him about your pain.

Write it down.

Pray about it.

Cry if you need to.

And when you're ready, begin asking God to help you release it.

You don't have to carry the weight of unforgiveness forever.

Let God work on your heart, one day at a time.

🙏 A Simple Prayer

Lord,

You know the hurt I've been carrying.

You know the people who have hurt me and the things that have been difficult for me to let go of.

Help me forgive, even when it feels hard.

Heal the places in my heart that are still hurting. Help me release bitterness, anger, and resentment and replace them with Your love and peace.

Give me the strength to forgive little by little, just as You have forgiven me.

And when I struggle, remind me that I don't have to do this alone.

Help me choose forgiveness and allow You to heal my heart.

Amen. 🤍

💕 Carry This With You

Forgiveness may not happen all at once. Sometimes it's a choice you make again and again until your heart finally begins to heal.

Give the hurt to God. Let Him help you let go. 🌸

With love,
Yolanda
Yoli’s Custom Creation 💕