We’ve all had emotional wounds in our life, haven’t we? Some of those wounds come at the hands of others, but sometimes they’re self-inflicted.
In today’s Family Minute we talked about the importance to bringing closure to those wounds, to healing those wounds, to healing those scars. The key to closure is forgiveness, if those wounds have been inflicted by someone else. It’s so important to forgive someone who’s hurt you so that a root of bitterness won’t start and continue to grow in your life.
Granting forgiveness is not a feeling, it’s a decision. When you really forgive someone you’re making four specific promises to yourself and to the other person. Your first promise is, “I will not dwell on this incident.” Second, “I will not bring up this incident again and use it against you.” The third promise is, “I will not talk to other people about it.” Fourth and finally you promise that, “I will not allow this matter to stand between us or hinder our personal relationship.”
Now, if your emotional wound was self-inflicted as a result of something that you did to someone else is to ask for forgiveness. The second thing you need to do is forgive yourself. Afterward, remember that once you’ve forgiven or been forgiven by the person you’ve hurt… the things from the past are all water under the bridge. The important thing is not to go back and cross that bridge again. It’s also important for you to surround yourself with people that will hold you accountable for your actions.
You can’t completely avoid emotional wounds, but knowing what to do when you’re hurting will help you to move past the pain and into the healing.
