One of the main reasons that we cannot prosper spiritually and emotionally is because we continue to abuse ourselves for the mistakes and errors in judgment we have made or the sins we have committed. When we begin to follow Christ, our sins are forgiven. We are a new creation. (II Corinthians 5:17) We still must deal with the consequences of our actions, but those consequences are separate from God’s forgiveness.
The adversary enjoys reminding us of the past. The enemy reminds us of the people we hurt and the lies we told. The consequences of our bad behavior must be addressed. We must seek the forgiveness of those who suffered, directly and indirectly, because of our misdeeds. Once we have sought that forgiveness, we must not wallow in the sins of the past. When we fail to forgive ourselves, we help the adversary in the attacks. We do damage to ourselves. We cannot move forward with God’s blessings if we do not know God’s promises to us. We cannot achieve prosperous living because we do not feel worthy of receiving God’s promises.
In Psalms 103:12, we know that “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.” With this scripture, we learn one of God’s many promises to us. Our sins have been removed from us when we give our lives to God. Our sins are erased from our lives when we repent and begin leading a life that pleases God. When we start to believe that God has forgiven us completely, we can begin to forgive ourselves. Forgiving ourselves is a vital part of the journey towards spiritual and emotional prosperity. We cannot reach our destination without forgiving ourselves. Start this process today and encourage others to do the same. Be blessed as you increase your focus on your spiritual and emotional health. Remain encouraged.
Second Sunday’s with Crystal are posts written by Crystal Cochren of www.myfaithandfitness.com.
