Free to Forgive, Free to Grow

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Well, hello my valued listeners, and welcome back to another episode of Living in Your Power.
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I'm your host, Dr. Marlene Greenlee. I'm just so grateful that you've chosen
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to spend this time with me today.
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Now, as we continue our July theme, Living Free, Walking Daily in Purpose and Peace,
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We've spent this month so far reflecting on the freedom that begins within and
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the daily choice to protect our peace.
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So today, we're exploring another step towards living freely.
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One that can be difficult, but incredibly transformative.
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So today's episode, the third in our July series, is titled Free to Forgive, Free to Grow.
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So let's get into it.
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Have you ever noticed how heavy unforgiveness can become?
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I mean, sometimes it's obvious, but other times it quietly settles into our hearts over the years.
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It can show up as resentment, disappointment, bitterness, or even the quiet
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replaying of conversations we wish had gone differently.
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Now, the interesting thing about unforgiveness is that it often keeps us connected
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to a painful moment long after that moment has passed.
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I mean, we think we're protecting ourselves by holding on, but often we're only
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prolonging our own pain.
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Now let me be clear. Forgiveness does not mean pretending something didn't happen.
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I mean, it does not mean excusing hurtful behavior.
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And it certainly does not mean allowing unhealthy patterns to continue.
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Forgiveness is something much deeper.
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It's choosing not to allow yesterday's hurt to control today's peace.
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Now, Ephesians 4, 31-32, the King James Version says,
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Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away
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from you with all malice.
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And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another,
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even as God, for Christ's sake, hath forgiven you.
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Now, what stands out to me in this passage is that we're first invited to put something away.
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That's bitterness, anger, malice.
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Only then can forgiveness begin to take root.
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And that's because forgiveness creates space.
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Space for healing. Space for compassion.
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Space for peace and perhaps that's why forgiveness feels so freeing,
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it's because it removes the weight we've been carrying and replaces it with
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something much lighter not because the past changes but because we do we do.
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So now growth and forgiveness are closely connected.
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Because it's difficult to move forward while constantly looking backwards.
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Many times, the greatest growth in our lives, dear listeners,
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begins when we decide that the pain we've experienced will no longer define us.
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Instead, it will develop us. It will deepen our compassion.
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It will strengthen our faith and increase our wisdom and remind us that healing is possible.
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Forgiveness isn't forgetting. It's releasing.
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It's trusting God with what we no longer need to carry.
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It's making room for joy to return. And isn't that what living free is really about?
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I mean, choosing not to remain imprisoned by yesterday so we can fully embrace today.
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That, for me, is living free.
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What about you? Tell me, tell me, what do you consider is living free?
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Now, let's return to these words. It says, be kind one to another.
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Tender hearted forgiving one another.
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Hmm. Forgiveness begins with the heart. And sometimes the first person we need
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to forgive is ourselves.
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So I want you to take a few moments this week and reflect on these.
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I want you to ask yourself these questions, write them down,
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journal them, and get your response.
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Is there someone I need to forgive? Is there something I need to release?
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Have I extended the same grace to myself that I so freely offer others?
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And what might become possible if I laid this burden down?
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So I will repeat those prompts for you again.
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I want you to reflect on these.
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Ask yourself is there someone I need to forgive is there something I need to release,
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have I extended the same grace to myself that I so fully offer others and what
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might become possible if I laid this burden down,
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I want you to remember forgiveness doesn't erase the past It frees your future.
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So in closing today,
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I want you to remember again, like I said, freedom isn't only found in what we gain.
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Sometimes it's found in what we're willing to release.
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So as you move through this week, I encourage you to ask yourself,
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what am I still carrying that God meant for me to hold?
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You don't have to carry resentment. You don't have to carry bitterness.
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You don't even have to carry regret.
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Why? Because there is freedom in forgiveness. And in that freedom, there is room to grow.
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I'm going to leave you with this today. So I want to thank you for joining me
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for episode 3 of our July series.
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Living free, walking daily in purpose and peace.
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So next week we'll conclude our July journey with living lightly releasing what
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we were never meant to carry so until next time dear listeners,
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I want you to continue to live boldly in your power today and if it gets tough just breathe.
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Because you've still got the strength to rise and remember,
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there's freedom in forgiveness and in that freedom there's room to grow so until
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next time continue to live in your power.