I have often read phrases like ” forgive for your own good“… or forgive for the burden is yours so lighten up yourself” These phrases sound good and factual but I have always felt uncomfortable reading or hearing them. I used to wonder if that’s the reason God asked us to forgive those who hurt us.

“And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
Ephesians 4:32 NKJV

Note that it says even as God in Christ forgave us…

How did God forgive us? Jesus paid the price for our sin by shedding his blood(Heb 9:22) and by faith in this sacrifice we receive forgiveness. If someone does not receive this forgiveness, he/she struggles to fellowship with God.

Now let’s transpose this with our relationship with one another; ….when a brother hurts another it is important that he forgives his brother not only for his peace of mind or good but also for the good of the one who hurt him so that real fellowship is restored. The one who hurt his brother must acknowledge the hurt and receive the forgiveness for a genuine fellowship.

Sometimes a brother makes light of a hurt and dismisses the forgiveness as unnecessary and still expects the hurt brother to “move on”…..this is not right.

In summary what I am saying is that;

1. Forgiveness is not only for the forgiver but also for the forgiven.

2. The forgiven has to acknowledge and receive forgiveness for genuine fellowship to be restored

3. It is pertinent that we let the one who has hurt us know and that we have forgiven (let’s not bottle it up and pray it will go away). It’s up to the forgiven to receive it or not.

Your Word is like fire in my bones.

Like a force moving the entirety of my being. Studying, meditating, musing on Your Word is my delight. And it keeps flowing; from one truth to another, from one revelation to another. Like an unending fountain it keeps pouring until my soul says ‘yes, it’s enough for now’.

Your Word is like fire in my bones.

I can’t get enough of it; when fully immersed in it, everything else fades. It keeps pouring, flowing like a river with tributaries merging and merging and merging, joining one truth to another, one revelation to another. My heart gets merry, my heart sings, my hands keep writing until I can write no more. Your Word, my delight.

Your Word is like fire in my bones.

Your truth; my hope and anchor. As sure as You are, as faithful as You are, the foundation of my faith, the substance of my believe, the rock of my life, the confidence of my believe, the assurance of glory and unfailing goodness. My life, my defence, my shield, my hope. Protecting, providing, preserving, …..Your Word.

Your Word is like fire in my bones.

Your revelations; like lights, shining so brightly into hearts. Lighting paths; leading the way. Refreshing and comforting; bringing peace to hearts as the wonders of Your works, the magnificence and magnitude of Your glorious wisdom unfolds.

Your Word; like fire in my bones. I cannot get enough of it. It is sweetness and joy to my heart. I am lost without Your Word.

Thank You Lord for your Word!

Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name!

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.

Who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

The Lord is merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.

The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting, on those who fear Him, and His righteousness to children’s children, to such as keep His covenant, and to those who remember His commandments to do them.

Bless the Lord, all you His hosts, You ministers of His, who do His pleasure. Bless the Lord, all His works, In all places of His dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul!

Psalms 103:1‭-‬5‭, ‬8‭, ‬11‭-‬12‭, ‬17‭-‬18‭, ‬21‭-‬22 NKJV

You are my portion, O Lord; I have said that I would keep Your words

I remember my days as a medical student, exams were always high pressure times, it doesn’t really matter how much you’ve studied or not studied. Our medical texts were so voluminous that it was impossible for anyone to boast to have covered any of them sufficiently for any exam.

Matthew 5:20 is saying to us….Live out who you identify as and profess to be, knowing it alone is just not good enough. We should not be Christians only in our Churches or only among other believers or only on Church days. We are to be light in a dark world and seasoning for a largely godless generation.

When passion turns to conviction with a corresponding action, then and only then can meaningful impact be made and change effected.
Passion (alone) about God seldom changes things, but faith always does.

Faith is not passive, it is active.
Faith believes the Word of God, Speaks the Word of God and Acts on the Word of God it believes.

Faith without corresponding works (action) is dead.

“A person’s body that does not have a spirit is dead. It is the same with faith—faith that does nothing is dead!“
James 2:26 ERV

Today, do something about what you say you believe. ???

ONE also describes something of same quality and make-up, something that is identical. This is the meaning of ONE this write-up is about.

The reason He did it is so that instead of suffering the curse, you can have and enjoy the blessing of Abraham; inheriting and enjoying all of God’s promises in Abraham through FAITH in Christ.

when we talk about people behind their backs, when we talk people down, when we degrade others with our words, when we bluntly dismiss other people’s feelings, when we engage in a conversation where we seek to build ourselves up or make ourselves look good by making others look bad- this is unwholesome talk.