Forgivers are Mountain Movers

Mark 11:25-26 And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

Before this, Jesus was telling us how to move mountains and get what we pray and say. Today’s verse starts with “And.” What does that mean? It means you can’t have what Verses 23 and 24 say without doing what Verses 25 and 26 say. You can’t teach Verses 23 and 24 without including the forgiveness part, “And when you stand praying...” This is when you are taking what you desire to the Lord and asking and receiving; and the Lord is saying, “But first, you must make sure you have forgiven.” When you stand praying, if you have not forgiven, if you have something in your heart towards someone, if you have a root of bitterness, according to Jesus, your faith will not work. Great faith comes with living in love with everyone around you. Living a life of forgiveness and love can equate to living a life of faith. We are supposed to live by faith. The Bible says, “the just shall live by faith.” If we want to live by faith, then we must, also, daily, walk in forgiveness. Let the Holy Ghost have the opportunity to tell you if you have not forgiven someone. Let others around you have permission to tell you when they know you are holding something against someone. When you need something, you don’t always have time to check your forgiveness status with God and other people, so live in a way that you always walk in love and hold no accounts open with people. Forgive so you are able to receive all that God has for you.

If you find yourself holding something against someone, and carrying around the hurt of it, you must drop it and forgive them. When we carry a hurt, or unforgiveness in our hearts, it turns into a root of bitterness. That root hurts you and will also hurt those around you. The Word says that the root of bitterness defiles many. The word “defile” is the same word used for rape. It literally makes someone an unwilling participant in your hurt, in your anger, in your unforgiveness. When we have ought or unforgiveness against someone, or even a group of someone’s, it doesn’t just hurt us, it doesn’t just hurt our faith, but it can potentially rob someone we know of their ability to walk in faith and receive from the Lord. This is serious! Realize that you are potentially hurting those you love because you can’t seem to let go of what someone did to you. Oh, I know how cruel people can be; they can lie and spread false stories. They can take something precious you gave them, your love and trust, and throw it away like garbage. Those you gave the most to can potentially hurt you the most, but it is time to cut the “sucker” lose because what they did is still sucking the life out of you. How much longer will you let this happen? Cut them lose! Ask the Lord to heal your broken heart. Don’t let anyone steal one more day; and definitely, don’t hurt those around you. Get the Holy Ghost’s help, and, by the grace of God, forgive and pull up that root of bitterness, so you can go on and have your best life.