Forgiveness

Maybe the real point of forgiveness isn't other people. I mean, we talk about setting them free and letting it go, but maybe forgiveness is ultimately about me, and it's about you. It's about us. Because when I forgive somebody and I set them free, it's like I'm really setting myself free. It's like when I forgive them and let them off the hook, I'm really letting myself off the hook. If I'm still carrying all that stuff around, it's a miserable... it's a miserable way to live. I mean, I don't know what you're carrying around, or how long you've been carrying it around... but as we journey through life, we get hurt and we get wounded, and we end up carrying these debts that people owe us. It's like we carry them with us everywhere we go. And after a while, these bags get heavy, don't they? And they can end up making the journey exhausting.

God didn't create you to carry that stuff around! God created you to be free, free from bitterness, free from rage and anger and revenge... free from feeling like you're the judge of the world. I mean, what does it look like for you to just let it go?

-Rob Bell