*Letting Go*

So glad you are joining me for another "Be A Better You" devotional!! Today's topic is a friendly reminder about focusing on the GOOD and LETTING GO of the bad. Get your Bible and your journal out. Grab a pen too and let's do a devotional!😁

Something that I have found to be so true in life, is that:

What we FOCUS on, makes a major impact in our lives. It really does.

It can be a negative impact or a positive one, depending on what our focus is.

Say, for example, say that someone spoke very negatively you and said some things about you that weren't true, just idle gossip... And then you heard about it......

Okay, well you've got two choices:

1. LET IT GO- (Choose to forgive them), or:

2. FOCUS on the things that were said.

Well, if, you choose the first one, and forgive them, Then this is what will result from that:

*By forgiving them, you will feel compassion for that person because you can take comfort in knowing that the Heavenly Father forgives you for your mistakes

*Also, forgiveness helps to NOT BE HURT by what they said

*You will be able to let it go because by forgiving, you are not holding onto it. You are handing it over to God.

*You can now pray for that person and be able to love them anyway

*This helps you remain in close fellowship with Christ because you can now reflect HIS LOVE to others as He wants you to do.

*This prevents the Devil from being able to meddle in the middle of any of this, because you have chosen to walk in the SPIRIT and NOT in the FLESH.

*So now you have AVOIDED A WHOLE ENTIRE EPISODE OF DRAMA! Praise God for that!

Forgiving is not always easy. But we CAN forgive and walking in the spirit helps us willingly want to forgive. However, if you choose the 2nd one, and FOCUS on the situation....it will result in:

*Reacting to the feelings of the flesh

*Feeling that hurt and then, getting angry. Then,

*Wanting to tell someone else about it. But if you tell someone about the situation out of anger, it ends up spreading and being gossip bc it's speaking out of anger and not love.

*Prayers being hindered because of those negative feelings

*Watering a seed of bitterness, which doesn't take long to take root.

*Broken relationships

*Having the situation affect family *Changes in attitude, and NOT in a good way.

*DRAMA- which is NEVER a good thing!

THE FIRST CHOICE seems WAY better than the 2nd, don't you agree?

It IS the best choice. Trust me, I have had this happen to me quite a few times in my lifetime, and I have tried both the 1st choice and the 2nd choice. I found that when I forgive, I feel better. I find so much PEACE. In the past when I have chosen to stew on it, I ended up adopting the spirit of offense, which is nothing but a TRAP from the enemy.

I know it's hard not to want to tell someone when we feel hurt and offended, but we should always remember to go to the FATHER first thing and surrender all of these feelings to him. This helps us heal, forgive, and show love and kindness. No, It does not make the other person right, but it does FREE us from the spirit of offense.

Remember:

*CHOOSE WHAT YOUR FOCUS IS*

***IF YOUR FOCUS IS JESUS, then HIS light will shine through you, and you will want to react like Jesus would. We show love, peace, and kindness through Him.

***But if your FOCUS is the situation and what was said about you, then it will result in a mess with negative feelings.

I know that we already know these things for the most part and it may seem like common sense, but IT IS ALWAYS GOOD TO REMIND OURSELVES OF THESE THINGS; and the reality is, at some point in our lives we will come in contact with negativity and conflict of interest with others. When someone wrongs us and says things that hurt us, those fleshly feelings come, and they can come on strong. That's why we must strive to walk in the SPIRIT. Doing this helps us deny those fleshy feelings. And no matter what others do, we must choose to do RIGHT, as children of God. How we react is important because it leaves an impact.

So, to sum up:

*FOCUS ON JESUS AND NOT THE SITUATION,

*TAKE IT TO THE LORD IN PRAYER FIRST AND FOREMOST.

*ASK THE LORD FOR STRENGTH TO FORGIVE.

*AFTER TAKING IT TO THE LORD, LEAVE IT THERE. DON'T GO BACK AND PICK IT UP.

*LEAVING IT WITH CHRIST, IS LETTING GO.

*REMEMBER, NONE OF US ARE PERFECT, SO BE FORGIVING TO ANOTHER WHEN THEY STUMBLE TOO

Let us be the light to others and do unto them as Jesus would do😊

Memory Verse:

"This I say then, Walk in the spirit and ye shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh."

Galatians chapter 5, verse 16

King James Version

Thanks for joining me for this devotional. Write down the memory verse and anything else that helps you😊 God bless you all!