Caves are dark and treacherous. They’re not healthy for human habitation. Many cave explorers never come out from the labyrinth of rock. Hurt, loss, deception, betrayal and disappointment can become caves of despair. The longer the wound remains, the deeper into the cave we may retreat. The light is shut out.
Alert! Our enemy wants to keep us there! Holding on to unresolved wounds is the opening to the cave. Forgiveness is the shimmering thread of light in that dark place – a strong, resilient cord, powerful to lead us out.
Are we prisoners of unforgiveness? How can we tell? Well, who holds the key to our peace? Is there someone we avoid that causes our stomachs to tighten? Does the heat of anger arise? Do we avoid contact? Is our pillow soaked with tears? Does the scab get ripped off over and over?
Staying wounded leaves us vulnerable and weak. God wants to heal our wounds and hurts so we CAN forgive.
Jesus said, “…if you hold ANYTHING against ANYONE forgive them, so that your Father in Heaven may forgive you, your sins.” (Mark 11:25).
Our sin against God can NEVER be commensurate to what someone could do to us. So, we keep perspective and exercise our will to forgive. Forgiveness is a decision, not a feeling – no amnesia. We remember the hurt.
Forgiveness is not for wimps. It always costs the weight of the offense. It costs the hurt. It costs the exact extent of our loss.
But, in forgiving, we can walk out of that dark cave of lonely isolation and brooding. We can unleash freedom from the bondage of unforgiveness.
We can obey God’s Word and see for ourselves that caves are for bats!
Vickie Richey
~Christ Fellowship