Paul could’ve chosen hate to fight back against his captors, but as an alternative, he selected to imagine that God was on top of things and that all the things else paled compared to the gospel of Jesus Christ being preached. Paul knew that although his calling required much of him, there was still joy to be present in the hope of lives being saved and transformed by Jesus. How is it possible to live out this type of radical love, forgiveness, and joy for all times and others? How can we truly overcome the basis of bitterness in our lives, and live in response to the bible and the teachings of Jesus? Here are three steps for helping to uproot and overcome bitterness in our lives:
1. Identify areas of bitterness.
Take a while to quietly reflect and ask the Lord if there are any areas of your life where bitterness may be taking root. Some areas may stand out to you pretty blatantly, but there may additionally be some blind spots. Reaching out to a detailed friend, member of the family, mentor, or pastor that you simply trust might be really helpful when identifying these areas. Often, those closest to us might help us see our blind spots and address them (Psalm 139:24).
2. Pray.
After you’ve identified some areas of your life where bitterness may be taking root, spend a while in prayer with Jesus. Confess to him the areas where you’ve held onto grudges towards others or towards a disappointing situation and ask for His help. Ask Him for forgiveness and for healing in these areas. Ask for a renewed mindset, peace towards others, and joy. Our God is a God of comfort, love, and restoration. He longs to see us made whole and to heal every broken situation (Isaiah 61:3).
3. Reconcile with others.
While it won’t all the time be possible in every situation, if there are areas of your life that you are feeling God is asking you to repair, make every effort to achieve this. This could appear to be a phone call, a text message, or meeting a person in person to assist reconcile a situation and put any hostility between you to rest. One of the attractive things in regards to the Kingdom of God is that it calls us into a lifetime of love, forgiveness, and unity with others as we start to see those that have wronged us as beloved children of God, and as brothers and sisters in Christ. (Romans 12:18, James 5:16, Psalm 133:1)
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