“You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:22-24).
Do you find it hard to forgive your parents for the way they treated you as a child?
As an adult, my memories of childhood are mixed. There are some very precious ones—laughter, warm cookies and bedtime stories. But, there are also some sorrowful ones. Life gets tough and it’s impossible for parents to shield their children from all pain.
Not long ago, a friend of mine told me she has terrible memories of her father. He beat her and her mother. Although she is married now and is a mother herself, she can’t forget what her father did to her while she was growing up. She can’t forgive him, either.
Do you have any memories like that? Do you understand you are the one being hurt by those memories?
The Bible advises us if we hold anything against someone else, we should forgive them. God says that not because He is unreasonable, but because forgiveness sets us free from the past. Forgiveness allows us to put the bad parts of our lives behind us and move on to the future.
Forgive your parents, completely, from your heart. Let God deal with them. Determine to move on with your life.
Experience the freedom that forgiveness brings!
Kimberly Snider is a missionary to the Philippines.
From “Moments for Moms,” a free email subscription.
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