Forgiveness: A Letter to a Friend

I will just be honest here.
For the past couple of weeks, I have struggled with bitterness.  I had been very close to someone, someone who I called my best friend, and the way they have acted towards me recently has made me very upset and sad.  This person has been the cause of a lot of hurt in my life over the past few months, and I don't know how to fix things between us.  It's been a big source of worry for me.

A few days ago, God gave me the answer.  My mom, siblings, and I were cleaning, and I was taking a short break.  We had the radio on a Christian station, and a song came on that I had never heard before.

I listened to every word.  It really hit me hard.  Some of the lines especially impacted me:

"It moves away the mad inside

It's always anger's own worst enemy"

  I would love to get rid of all the anger and hurt I have towards this person.  I have to be willing to let God remove it though.  I can't just hold on to it, making myself sicker and sicker.  When you have surgery, you have to rest and let the doctor do his job.  God wants to take away my anger, I just have to release it to Him.

"It'll clear the bitterness away

It can even set a prisoner free
There is no end to what its power can do
So let it go and be amazed
By what you see through eyes of grace
The prisoner that it really frees is you"

The longer I refuse to forgive someone, the longer I am trapped in a prison of my own making.  If I succumb to hatred and bitterness, it will rule my life.  God is supposed to rule my life.  We have a problem here.  However, we are not alone in this.  God will help us to choose forgiveness and love over bitterness and anger, Christlikeness over sinfulness.

"Show me how to love the unlovable

Show me how to reach the unreachable
Help me now to do the impossible
Forgiveness
I want to finally set it free
So show me how to see what Your mercy sees
Help me now to give what You gave to me
Forgiveness"

When a person treats you badly, it is easy to see reasons why you should not have to love them.  When a person you care about refuses to talk to you, they can seem pretty unreachable.  But Jesus Christ was mistreated and abused by the very ones He came to die for.  He prayed for forgiveness for them.  Our world would not listen to God, so he sent Jesus to reach the unreachable. 

Should I not do the same?   First, forgive to release the bitterness.  Who am I to refuse to do for others what God did for me in such a large amount?  Next, show the love of God to this person no matter how they treat me.  Even if this person refuses to talk to me, acknowledge me, or even notice that I exist, I still need to show them Christ through me.  Then, try (with God's help) to heal the broken relationship.    Lastly, I need to pray for this person.  I still love them and care about them, even if they don't seem to in return.  Even if they never know, God knows.

So, if you, the one I am talking about, are reading this now, I want you to know that I forgive you.  I have before, and I will continue.  I pray that God will be with you, and that He will guide your steps.  Please know that I will be here if you need a friend. 

Love,

Rebecca