Dear Younger Self,

You expect too much out of both yourself and others.   You  mentally beat yourself up when you don’t meet your expectations, and you replay how others have wronged you over and over again in your mind.  You exaggerate the sins of yourself and others and hold bitterness in your heart.

You need to stop this!  It makes you ugly and causes more stress and negative feelings than you can imagine.  Before you start to get sucked into that slippery downhill spiral, remember that Jesus, who never sinned against anyone,  died for all sins, both yours and everyone else’s, and has given complete forgiveness to all who ask for it.

When you harbor resentment, it only hurts yourself.  Most people who have hurt you don’t even remember that they have done so.   Communicate with those who have sinned against you instead of getting angry and telling others what they did.  Learn from your sins, repent, and move past them.   You can’t do this without God’s help, so rely on Him for every step on the journey of forgiveness.

Living in this fallen world means that you will be dealing with sin on a daily basis.   Forgiveness clears your mind and heart so they are free to purse more positive actions.

 

This post is part of a  31 Day Blogging Challenge entitled Advice to my Younger Self.  Please click here  to find all the posts in this series.  You’ll be glad you did!