Forgive, Keep Walking,
Forget, Continue to Walk, and Let Go.
One of the hardest things I’ve learned and I am still
learning is letting go. There is so much
hype about letting go, but, unfortunately, the hype is only words that we say
and not what we do.
Victor Frankl, the author of the book, Man’s Search For
Meaning, fell into my hands one day. I was struggling with injustices that were
occurring in my life. I began reading it
and the biblical interpretation of forgiveness finally clicked in my heart and my
mind. I saw that forgiveness is one of
the main principles of letting go.
Forgiveness benefits me. It frees me to keep walking my path. But not
only does forgiveness free me, it also gives me the freedom to forget and let
go of hurts and pain that sometime anchor within the soul and destroys it.
Thus, forgiving, forgetting and keep walking have become
fundamental stones within me. They
make letting go a reality in my life. It
is not easy; it is not an overnight development; it is not something that I
learn and never have to learn again. It
is a process.
Forgive, Keep Walking,
Forget, Continue to Walk, and Let Go.
Forgive the offence and keep walking,
Forget the offence as you continue to walk,
And you will discover along the way, that you have Let Go.
Forgive, Keep Walking,
Forget, Continue to Walk, and Let Go.
Shalom,
Pat Garcia
Good article about probably the hardest thing to do in life's journey. We say we forgive, but the letting go is the hard part. Those thoughts keep creeping back into our mind. I once read that when we forgive another person, that is the easy part, we are forgiving them for ourselves so we can have peace to let go of the bitterness, and as you say, forget, and let go. As hard as it is, we must try to block those thoughts from our mind. To truly forgive is to forget and move on with our life. We can not let bitterness rule us.
ReplyDeleteWell said!
Hi Sis,
DeleteThank you. Yes, I believe this is one of the hardest things to do in life. To forgive and forget and keep marching. So many times the injustices that happen to us keep us back from experiencing God's best.
Shalom,
Patricia
Excellent words of advice Patricia. It is tough to forgive and 'let go" but it is critical for our health. I too know how hard it is for me to forgive. I'm still working at it. My writing has helped me learn several things about life, so I am learning to forgive.
ReplyDeleteI managed to post my second day of quotes. All I have to do is figure out what else I want to write about... GULP!! Have fun with your family. Hugs, Gwynn
Hi My Dear Friend,
DeleteI believe forgiving and forgetting and learning how to walk on is a life long process. No one ever graduates because as long as people are on this planet there will be offences and insults. So keep walking, you are on the right path.
Thank you so much for dropping my.
Shalom,
Patricia
You know, I'm quite surprised about this article Patti. Not about you or the way you write it. I knew already you're a strong, passionate and enormously wonderful person always trying to make things even better.
ReplyDeleteBut when I prepared two blog posts of this challenge last night I didn't see this one yet. And when you're going to read my "day 2" article on my blog, you will find out why I'm was surprised.
Hi A.J.,
DeleteThank you so much for dropping by. I read your day 2 this morning and have a smile on my face. We two experience synchronise thinking without knowing what the other would write. That is a good sign of friendship. Every now and then something like that happens to me and I see it as a good omen.
Shalom,
Patti
Thank you, Pat. This is so true. Someone once said that unforgiveness is like drinking poison hoping the other person will die. It will slowly eat at our hearts and eventually kill us. Forgiving someone not only frees the forgiver, but the forgiven as well. And we are commanded to do so. Walk in faith and forgiveness my sister, you are such an inspiration to me! Love, Deirdre
ReplyDeleteHello My Dear Deirdre,
DeleteYou've hit the nail directly on the head, unforgiveness is a killer. It will kill you. Yet so many people walk around with unforgiveness in their heart because it is hard to let go of old hurts. It is difficult to forget and they get stuck in the mire of bitterness.
Thank you so much for dropping by and sharing your thoughts.
Shalom,
Patricia
Thank you Pat. I'm going through a process right now of trying to forgive and to be compassionate towards two women. Last night I was writing in my gratitude journal for the days away in nature and getting home safely etc and for not thinking and obsessing about what I see as an injustice by these two women (a recent event in a group that I am in), and I asked G.d also to help me feel more compassionate towards these women ... and I felt a huge lot better and indeed more compassionate towards them - if only because they do not know what they do. It seemed so simple - and it is.
ReplyDeleteMy Dear Susan,
ReplyDeleteThis same process hits me time and time again and especially when it is to someone close to me or to myself. I struggle mentally with whether or not to trust that person, because I believe trust is something you earn, and you earn it by keeping your word.
My compassion still goes out to them and as you say, it makes you feel better, but I wonder if they realise how they destroy the trust factor and that is something precious that is seldom rebuilt.
Thank you, Lady for sharing your thoughts.
Have a great week.
Shalom,
Patricia
Thank you dear Pat ....
DeleteNot forgiving just weighs you down! Great quote.
ReplyDeleteHi Clee,
DeleteThank you for visiting. Yes, not forgiving does weigh you down and it stops any forward progress.
Shalom,
Patricia
Forgiveness -- the key to letting go. Enlightening. Thank you, Patricia. Letting go is so very hard to do, and, yes, the letting go and the practice of it do take time. Wise, wise words here, from both you and Victor Frankl.
ReplyDeleteYou are such a good writer, Pat, especially of essays. Have you thought about publishing a book of your essays? They are so wise, thought provoking and comforting, compassionate.
Thank you.
Shalom,
Samantha
Hi Samantha,
DeleteThank you for your words of praise. Yes, letting go is hard. I can't count the times I have struggled with letting go. There have been so many. Yet, I can confirm that each time I practice it, at some time or another, the relief and peace that I seek comes to my heart and I am free.
Shalom,
Patricia
If we don't let go, we grow heavier by the mile until moving forward become impossible. Great post and one I can relate to.
ReplyDeleteHi Clee,
DeleteThank you once again. I so agree. The burden on our shoulders get heavier and you come to a stand still where you are not moving at all. Our freedom to be is often tied to our willingness to forgive and letting go especially when we have been wronged, treated unfairly, or misjudged.
Shalom,
Patricia
A quote challenge? That's neat! I love quotes! :)
ReplyDeleteLetting go is extremely hard. I find that there are some things that I still can't forgive and forget. It's a lot easier said than done. Hopefully we will both get there. :)
Hi Chrys,
DeleteSorry for just responding but I had family visiting from the States and switched my priorities around so they could enjoy their trip to Germany.
Thank you for commenting. Yes, letting go is extremely hard. I can't count the times that I have struggled with it. I believe it is a lesson that elevates in difficulty each time we have to do it. The main thing is to stay with it. No one ever reaches perfection with letting go, but we feel relief and release when we practice it. It sets us free.
I see you and I are co-hosts along with a couple of other writers on IWSG tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it.
Have a great day.
Shalom,
Patricia
Hello there.
ReplyDeleteI agree that forgiving and letting go might be terribly hard for some. However, in order for God to forgive us, we must forgive others...it is a Godly requirement (Matthew 6:12). It also takes much humility and soul-searching on our part, but is a necessary step if we want to move forward and gain God's favour. Besides, resentment only festers and consumes all our happiness and energy. I look at it this way: Just think how many thousands of years Jehovah God has been forgiving us humans for our mistakes. It's comforting to know that He Himself is willing to forgive us if we are truly repentant and strive not to repeat the same mistake(s) over and over (Proverbs 28:13). In fact, God actually blots out our mistakes and does not bring them up again nor hold them against us provided we are indeed truly sorry (Isaiah 43:25; Jeremiah 31:34; Acts 3:19; 1 John 1:9). So whenever you are feeling resentful, I encourage you to pray earnestly to God and ask Him to help you be more forgiving. Hope you don't mind all the Scriptures...I'm passionate about the Bible and the comfort it can bring.
I just popped over to say thanks for your recent visit to my blog. Wishing you all the best.
Entrepreneurial Goddess
Hi EG,
DeleteThank you so much for dropping by and sharing your thoughts on forgiving and letting go. And I am not offended at all with your use of scriptures. I am also passionate about the Bible. I read many books but the Bible is number 1 in my life.
Have a great weekend.
Shalom,
Pat