| | Dealing With Bitterness and ResentmentBitterness, we ALL struggle with it. The thing about it is do you let it take root in your life. Everyone gets mad at someone for something, lots of times it's something really quite silly and meaningless. But there are those times when someone really hurts you deep down and that root of bitterness takes hold of your life. Your bitterness towards that person takes over your life, even though you don't realize it. All it can take is for someone to say or do something similar to what happened to you and BAM that bitterness sprouts right on up. It can ruin relationships, cause others to not want to be around you and you might not even realize it. That bitterness will carry itself to every friendship/relationship you ever have. You do have a choice to make in the matter though. Forgiveness is SOOOO much more healthy than bitterness. Living with forgiveness in your heart won't let bitterness take root. Bitterness will destroy everything in it's path, forgiveness restores everything in it's path. Resentment is a lot the same thing, but a little different in other ways. I've heard folks be so resentful towards others simply because they wanted this certain thing to happen to them, but instead it happens to a friend, or even a family member. They bad mouth that person saying mean things, just because something good happened in their life and they think it should happen to them and not that other person. Do you know people like this? I know MANY! That is the height of selfishness in my book. Resentment so takes over your thoughts that you can't even SEE when something good DOES happen to you. You are so caught up in anger, EVERYTHING makes you angry. Such a sad way to live a life. If you want to BE happy, be happy for others when God blesses other's lives. That may be what He is waiting on to bless your life. Be happy for other's when they are prosperous and good things happen to them, it'll change your whole attitude about living. I just want to exhort everyone who has lived in bitterness, live in forgiveness. You will be SOOO pleasantly surprised at how living with a forgiving heart changes your whole outlook on life. For me, the only way to be able to TRULLY forgive is thru Christ. He has shown the ultimate forgiveness in forgiving us of our sins. I know what it feels like to carry bitterness around with you everywhere. It's raised it's ugly head in my life many times, only now because of Christ, I see it's head pop up when I get angry about something and it doesn't take root any longer. Only Christ can pull that bitterness out by the root, you can't do it yourself, as hard as you may try it just keeps coming back. Live with the freedom of forgiveness folks, that way YOU can be happy in ALL things. This wasn't quite the post I was going to do, but it's what came out. Just something thats been on my heart for a while and really started hitting home while I was away from Xanga for that 40 days. I thought about a lot of things, this was one of them. Sorry I'm not the eliquent writer to whoo everyone, but it's from the heart none the less! May you all have a blessed and forgiving week this week my xanga friends! God bless you all with what HE see's fit! ~Grampy~ |
