One of my biggest challenges in life is forgiveness.
I find it very difficult to forgive people who hurt me especially those who do it deliberately.
Forgiveness sets you free.
When you hold grudges against people because they did you wrong, you feel burdened with a lot of hatred but when you forgive them, you feel liberated.
That hatred burden is lifted off you and you feel free!
You have a lot of space in your life to fill with good things and not plotting revenge or spending time remembering all the wrong things that others have done to you.
The burden forgiveness creates is terrible.
You harbour so much hatred it clouds your judgement to see people for who they really are and not for some of their mistakes.
Even if they repent and do good things, you become cynical about their actions and assume they are doing it for selfish reasons and not because they truly want to help.
Sometimes you become paranoid about the same people hurting you again even if they have repented.
You cannot have fulfilled relationships with others because you think they might also hurt you.
It is easier now for me to forgive people because I remind myself that they are humans and humans are imperfect.
I know every human being including myself is imperfect and capable of making mistakes so they should be given second chances.
Forgiveness does no mean that they do not pay for their consequences.
Actions come with consequences.
You can forgive a close friend for betraying you and decide to end the friendship; that is the consequences for his/her actions.
That close friend loses the friendship you both shared.
To forgive is to stop feeling angry or resentment towards someone for an offense, flaw or mistake.
Forgiveness starts the moment you realise that all humans make mistakes.
There are so many reasons why people hurt others but most often it is for selfish reasons.
You release them from revenge.
You cannot take revenge on people you have forgiven because then you have not forgiven them.
My life is better now that I have forgiven some people.
The time I would have spent plotting revenge, I spend that time doing more productive things that will benefit me.
It is one day at a time.
There are still some people I need to forgive and I hope do so very soon.
Adios!