Friday, November 4, 2011

Let Go Of Anger, Bitterness

Absalom behaved in this way toward all the Israelites who came to the king asking for justice, and so he stole the hearts of the men of Israel. -- 2 Samuel 15:6

Absalom was a very angry, very bitter man. His older brother had raped Absalom’s sister and their father didn’t do a thing about it. So Absalom took his time and, eventually, murdered his brother Amnon. That didn’t satisfy his need for vengeance. I wonder if anything would have.

It’s not that he didn’t have reason to be upset. But who did he hurt the most by staying angry for so long? Who ultimately paid when he turned his anger on his father, King David? How could Absalom really imagine he could take on God’s anointed and survive? He wasn’t thinking and that was the root of the problem.

Nothing Absalom could do would change what happened. Nothing would change David’s response. But forgiveness could change Absalom’s heart. Forgiveness would allow Absalom to move forward and have a productive life. But he just couldn’t, or wouldn’t, let it go. So he plotted to take over his father’s throne. He made another bad decision fueled by anger and bitterness he just couldn’t seem to let go.

What are you holding on to? What do you refuse to hand over to God for justice? What are you allowing to destroy your today for a tomorrow you can’t change/

Understand that giving something to God, letting it go, forgiving day-by-day, doesn’t make it right. It doesn’t wipe away the wrong. It doesn’t give the person responsible a free pass. It just means that you refuse to allow that person to control your today and your tomorrow. It means that you choose to forgive a wrong. It means that you trust God to take care of it in His own way and His own time.

Forgiveness is hard. Sometimes you have to do it again and again. And often the person responsible won’t even acknowledge the wrong, much less ask for forgiveness. Do the people committing the wrongs deserve forgiveness? Probably not. But neither do you or I deserve God’s forgiveness for our sins. We are to forgive -- and let God take care of the rest.

So let it go. Give it away. Move on. You deserve better. God will take care of it. Trust Him. He will put your enemies in their place.