tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5193745359560427451.post1237621739705190844..comments2024-03-17T05:49:51.113-07:00Comments on The Refiner's Fire Blog: A short lesson about forgivingCarmenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14998146626031186940noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5193745359560427451.post-44565266414901523912018-05-15T20:01:09.764-07:002018-05-15T20:01:09.764-07:00Continuation of Rebecca's email concerning my ...Continuation of Rebecca's email concerning my blog on forgiving:<br /><br />This isn t loving your enemies. This is destroying your enemies with words. You just happen to be related to them. True or not, this kind of speech could also be interpreted as slander, the evil tongue, gossip, and many other negative things that also don t go over well with God. If you had truly forgiven your mother, you wouldn t feel the need to go on and on about how evil she was. I m not saying that it s easy. It s very hard especially when it s someone who was suppose to protect you and they violate that. If you had truly forgiven her, maybe you might be disappointed that she didn t choose to be a better person. After all, isn t it s God s desire that we all be saved... even her? If you had truly forgiven her, maybe you might be brought to tears at your complete heartbreak at all the lost potential for good that she failed to take hold of in her life. By focusing on the pain your mother caused you and how evil she was, you are reopening those emotional wounds over and over again and refusing to allow yourself to heal. God keeps trying to heal you and you won t let Him. <br />It s obvious that you are a passionate person. That comes through loud and clear in everything your write. However, much of the time, your intended message gets lost in all that passion and emotion. As a reader, often the message I get from you is the intense emotions that you are feeling and the message that you are trying to send doesn t come through because it s being overshadowed by the passion. Passion can be good, but it can also be bad. It s good when we direct it and mold it to help us make a point, but it s bad when it takes control of us and sends it s own message that we never intended. I ve learned through my own writing that whatever I m focused on when I write is what others are focused on when they read what I ve written. If I m focused primarily on sending a message, then they hear the message, but if I m focused mostly on the emotions, then they will focus on the emotions. You have some great messages on your website and on your blog! That s why I was drawn to your site in the first place, but I couldn t seem to get myself to stay because of all the negative, emotionally draining, often angry, emotions that kept coming through. Please don t be mad at me for saying all this. I mean it in love and for your own well being. <br /><br />-Matthew 6:15 but if you forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses<br /><br />Shalom!=<br /><br />Carmenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14998146626031186940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5193745359560427451.post-31789564545840273242018-05-15T20:00:21.228-07:002018-05-15T20:00:21.228-07:00Someone named Rebecca saw fit to send me this vitr...Someone named Rebecca saw fit to send me this vitriolic reprimand, which was so long, I'll have to post it in two separate posts:<br /><br />You recently posted about forgiveness on your blog. I wasn t able to get through the whole thing because by the time you actually started to talk about forgiveness, I felt so emotionally drained. As a reader, you lost all credibility with me on the topic because of the seemingly endless amounts of vile loathing, hatred, anger, bitterness, and sheer desire to completely destroy your mother that came through in the first half or more of the post. True forgiveness means that you have let go of that anger and resentment for your own sake. Real forgiveness is about not allowing yourself to be eaten up inside by those feelings of hatred, anger, bitterness, loathing, and the desire to destroy others because it s these things that will destroy you inside. Why would any reader of your blog believe anything you have to say about forgiveness when you obviously are still extremely resentful and hateful of those in your life who have caused you harm and pain? We are told to love even our enemies. This includes family, relatives, and those people who have hurt us. Why would God allow anyone into His kingdom knowing that they are filled with the desire to destroy others in this manner? Why would God allow you into His kingdom knowing that you will behave in such a way as to completely destroy others? God feels very strongly about people who don t treat their parents with respect and dignity.<br />-Exodus 20:12 Honor your father and mother -Exodus 21:15 He that smites his father and mother shall be put to death -Exodus 21:17 he that curses his father or mother shall be put to death -Leviticus 19:3 you shall fear every man his mother and his father -Leviticus 20:9 for every one that curses his father or his mother shall be surely put to death. He has curses his father or mother. His blood shall be on him.<br />-Deuteronomy 5:16 Honor your father and mother -Deuteronomy 27:16 Cursed be he that setteth light by his father or his mother -Proverbs 20:20 Who so curses his father and mother, his lamb shall be put out in obscure darkness -Matthew 15:4 Honor your father and mother and he that curses father or mother, let him die -Matthew 19:19 Honor your father and mother and love your neighbor as yourself.<br />There are more verses, but I think you get the point. You ll notice that the penalty for failing to respect your parents is death. When looked at from God s perspective, what could possibly motivate Him to allow anyone into His kingdom knowing that they will spew such hatred for others? <br />Carmenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14998146626031186940noreply@blogger.com