As I was thinking of the three scenarios of this series, I forgot to mention one last element of dealing with past issues.  I have covered the need to forgive others who have wronged us and are willing to step up to the plate and ask for forgiveness of us.  I have dealt with people who are no longer in our lives but have had a negative effect on our mindset.  We need to be willing to forgive them if they ever stepped up to the plate and took responsibility for their part in our past issues.  The last part that was addressed centered on going and confronting those who had wronged us but continued to be apart of our lives in the present.

The last issue to discuss involves forgiving yourself.  We hear the need to seek God’s forgiveness for what we have done wrong.  That is important to get His direction for our lives.  We need to seek forgiveness from others we have wronged so that we can be in connection with them.  Very healthy to do.  We need to face others who have wronged us so that we can hopefully remove the issue that stops us from having connection with that person.  Also very important to do.  But what about forgiving ourselves for things that we have done that we aren’t able to forgive ourselves.  Do you continually beat yourself up for something you have done in the past that haunts you?  Do you question God’s forgiveness for that issue even though you have asked Him over and over for His forgiveness?  Is it so big and so terrible that you have carried the guilt of it with you for a long time?  Are you so embarrassed about your past actions that you have never shared your offense with anyone?

The first step in forgiving yourself is to make sure that you know that God has forgiven you.  John, an apostle of Christ, wrote about God forgiving us and said, “If we confess our sins, God is faithful and righteous to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” I John 1:9.  He doesn’t qualify what sins are forgiven or say that certain sins can’t be forgiven.  Forgiveness is solely based on our willingness to take responsibility and confess our sins.  If we confess, He forgives.  So if you have confessed your past issue with Him, He has forgiven it.  Simple as that.  What He wants from us is to thank Him for His forgiveness of that issue.  Our thankfulness is a demonstration of faith in believing that He has forgiven it. So every time it comes to our mind about that past issue, we need to say to ourselves that issue has been dealt with and never ask forgiveness for it again, because God forgave it.

The second step is to forgive ourself.  If God is able to forgive whatever we have done, don’t you think that He wants us to forgive ourself as well.  The way we forgive ourselves is to make this kind of statement to ourself.  “Thank you God for forgiving me of my past mistake and because you have forgiven me, I am choosing to forgive myself and never beat myself up again for what I have done.  Any time in the future the issue surfaces in my mind, I am going to thank you for your forgiveness and will choose to be thankful that I have forgiven myself and move on.

The act of forgiving myself and then being thankful for God’s forgiveness and then my forgiveness moves me to the present so that I don’t dwell on the past.  I cut away the sins of the past and focus on the present and the future.  I love the passage in Hebrews 12:1-2 which is such a great picture of what the Lord wants me to do with my past.  The previous chapter tells of all the men and women of faith before us who have died and are with the Lord in heaven.  The author then states, “Since we have such a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every sin and encumbrance which so easily entangles us, so that we can run the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and protector of our faith,. . .”  It is so important to lay aside the sins of the past so that we can focus on the present and future relationships and tasks that God has in store for us, He being the focus of our faith.

Principle

By forgiving ourselves and being thankful for His forgiveness, we can begin to live in the present and see all that He has in store for our future without carrying all the past baggage.