🔗 Forgiveness could be your missing link

What if forgiveness could heal?

Something incredible about miraculous healings is that about 90% of them come from choosing to forgive.

Our body stores anger, trauma and resentment when we don’t grieve, forgive, heal from trauma or cut ourselves off from community and family.

*Neuroscience facts about forgiveness and our brain

This could look like headaches, poor sleep, menstrual issues + PMS, hormonal imbalances, bloating, weight gain, poor vision… in other words, there’s a chance it could be anything you’re struggling with.

I remember being at a women’s retreat about two years ago where we had a worship/prayer session on the last night. I asked the Holy Spirit to just work through me whatever needed to be worked out. I felt completely fine with nothing specific on my mind, until suddenly I started sobbing and my spirit kept repeating, “I forgive them, I forgive them, I forgive them, I forgive them”.

It felt like I was pleading on their behalf and letting them and myself go from torment. Like it was a dire moment. I didn’t even know who I was forgiving in the moment, it must have been a collection of people and memories that I was storing in my soul that the Holy Spirit has then started revealing to me over the last two years.

When it was over, I felt a lightness in my heart that I’ve never experienced and I believe this was the start of my healing/forgiveness journey.

Types of forgiveness

Forgiving others:

Something important to note is that forgiving doesn’t mean that you condone what the person has done. A lot of times we need to forgive people who may not even realize they have hurt you. To those who have been through something very traumatic, it doesn’t seem fair to “let it go” and that’s understandable. But you also need to know that God is holding you and knows your situation. His commandment to forgive does not mean He’s ok with what happened. He wants you to start healing, He wants a better life for you just as much as you do. Trust this process and ask Him daily for the strength to continue. Ask Him to renew your heart and mind about yourself, the person and the situation.

Forgiving yourself:

You may feel ashamed of your past, lies that you believed about yourself, ashamed of how you treated others or something you’ve done. Jesus CHOSE to die for you and your sins. If you believe in Him as your Lord and Savior, He has forgiven you and you have been set free. Don’t look back, you are a new creation and you can ask the Holy Spirit daily to help you and give you grace to become the person God sees you as.

Forgiving God:

We know that God does not need forgiveness but YOU may be holding onto resentment towards God if you felt like God has abandoned you or someone you love. You may feel like God doesn’t love you or care about you like He does others. You might feel like He answers everyones prayers but yours. You may have been unaware until now that you felt this way towards God, and now is your time to repent. Ask God for forgiveness that you have believed this about Him, about your self worth and that He would reveal the truth to you about your identity and His identity.

Notes and Prayer from Henry Hastings:

“What many people may not realize is that forgiveness is an act of the will, not an emotion. You don’t need to “feel” like forgiving someone in order for forgiveness to work. Your feelings of anger and resentment are valid, especially after a horrific situation. Forgiving is choosing to release this person to God and this could be a process for you and not immediate.

Un-forgiveness is an open door that the enemy can come into. Satan is a legalist and in the Word it is very clear that if you do not forgive those who have hurt you, our Father in heaven will not forgive you either and you’re handed over to the tormentors (Matthew 18:21-35)”.

This is why we start seeing healing because forgiveness spiritually and physically sets you free.

Prayer:

“Father in heaven I confess to you, that I have held un-forgiveness and sometimes bitterness and resentment in my heart against certain people, who have hurt or disappointed me. I now realize this is sin, I confess it as sin. For You have said in Your word that if we confess our sin You are faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. I now forgive the following people, who have hurt and disappointed me:

*spend some time with God naming the people. If emotions start coming up or you get scared, just tell the Lord, ‘Lord I give you my heart right now because this is scary for me. I need You to hold my heart for me right now’.

I now freely forgive all these people, and if they are living, I ask you Lord to bless them. I also forgive myself for all my faults and failures because you have freely forgiven me, and I thank You for this forgiveness and I thank You Father for freedom from the burden of un-forgiveness, the burden of bitterness and the burden of resentment in Jesus name.”

Verses about forgiveness:

• Ephesians 4:32 TPT

  But instead be kind and affectionate toward one another. Has God graciously forgiven you? Then graciously forgive one another in the depths of Christ’s love.

• Mark 11:25-26 TPT

  “And whenever you stand praying, if you find that you carry something in your heart against another person, release him and forgive him so that your Father in heaven will also release you and forgive you of your faults. But if you will not release forgiveness, don’t expect your Father in heaven to release you from your misdeeds.”

• Matthew 6:12 TPT

  Forgive us the wrongs we have done as we ourselves release forgiveness to those who have wronged us.

• Matthew 6:14-15 TPT

  “And when you pray , make sure you forgive the faults of others so that your Father in heaven will also forgive you. But if you withhold forgiveness from others, your Father withholds forgiveness from you.”

• Matthew 18:15-20 TPT

  “If your fellow believer sins against you, you must go to that one privately and attempt to resolve the matter. If he responds, your relationship is restored. But if his heart is closed to you, then go to him again, taking one or two others with you. You’ll be fulfilling what the Scripture teaches when it says, ‘Every word may be verified by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ And if he refuses to listen, then share the issue with the congregation in hopes of restoration. If he still refuses to respond, even to the church, then you must disregard him as though he were an outsider, on the same level as an unrepentant sinner.

  “Receive this truth: Whatever you forbid on earth will be considered to be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you release on earth will be considered to be released in heaven. Again, I give you an eternal truth: If two of you agree to ask God for something in a symphony of prayer, my heavenly Father will do it for you. For wherever two or three come together in honor of my name, I am right there with them!”

• Matthew 18:21-35 TPT

  Later Peter approached Jesus and said, “How many times do I have to forgive my fellow believer who keeps offending me? Seven times?”

  Jesus answered, “Not seven times, Peter, but seventy times seven times! The lessons of forgiveness in heaven’s kingdom realm can be illustrated like this:

  “There once was a king who had servants who had borrowed money from the royal treasury. He decided to settle accounts with each of them. As he began the process, it came to his attention that one of his servants owed him one billion dollars. So he summoned the servant before him and said to him, ‘Pay me what you owe me.’ When his servant was unable to repay his debt, the king ordered that he be sold as a slave along with his wife and children and every possession they owned as payment toward his debt. The servant threw himself facedown at his master’s feet and begged for mercy. ‘Please be patient with me. Just give me more time and I will repay you all that I owe.’ Upon hearing his pleas, the king had compassion on his servant, and released him, and forgave his entire debt.

  “No sooner had the servant left when he met one of his fellow servants, who owed him twenty thousand dollars He seized him by the throat and began to choke him, saying, ‘You’d better pay me right now everything you owe me!’ His fellow servant threw himself facedown at his feet and begged, ‘Please be patient with me. If you’ll just give me time, I will repay you all that is owed.’ But the one who had his debt forgiven stubbornly refused to forgive what was owed him. He had his fellow servant thrown into prison and demanded he remain there until he repaid the debt in full.

  “When his associates saw what was going on, they were outraged and went to the king and told him the whole story. The king said to him, ‘You scoundrel! Is this the way you respond to my mercy? Because you begged me, I forgave you the massive debt that you owed me. Why didn’t you show the same mercy to your fellow servant that I showed to you?’ In a fury of anger, the king turned him over to the prison guards to be tortured until all his debt was repaid. In this same way, my heavenly Father will deal with any of you if you do not release forgiveness from your heart toward your fellow believer.”

• 2 Corinthians 2:7 TPT

  Instead of more punishment, what he needs most is your encouragement through your gracious display of forgiveness.

• Colossians 3:12 TPT

  You are always and dearly loved by God! So robe yourself with virtues of God, since you have been divinely chosen to be holy. Be merciful as you endeavor to understand others, and be compassionate, showing kindness toward all. Be gentle and humble, unoffendable in your patience with others.

• Colossians 3:13 TPT

  Tolerate the weaknesses of those in the family of faith, forgiving one another in the same way you have been graciously forgiven by Jesus Christ. If you find fault with someone, release this same gift of forgiveness to them.

• Ephesians 4:31 TPT

  Lay aside bitter words, temper tantrums, revenge, profanity, and insults.

• Luke 23:24 TPT

  While they were nailing Jesus to the cross, he prayed over and over, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing.” The soldiers, after they crucified him, gambled over his clothing.

• 1 John 1:9 TPT

  But if we freely admit our sins when his light uncovers them , he will be faithful to forgive us every time. God is just to forgive us our sins because of Christ , and he will continue to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.