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Psalm 38

Burning baggage

If you have travelled anywhere and particularly with children you will know all about baggage. When we go on holidays we have to put a special luggage pod on the roof of our car. Everyone nearly has their knees on their noses because we have so much stuff.

too much baggage in your life?

I’d like with this new series to encourage you to become unburdened. I have no doubt that you are carrying burdens that either Christ wants to take off you or that he wants you to let go of.

Unforgiveness is common. It is promoted as a virtue in nearly all Hollywood films and TV shows - they call it revenge. No one can live long on this planet without being hurt, without being treated unfairly, unkindly and unjustly. It isn’t long before you become a victim. You can’t help that and you can’t stop that from happening.

But like a person who have been bitten by a vampire we then go around biting other people. Victim becomes victimiser. Learning to forgive is the only answer to resolving guilt, to quenching anger and to fulfilling Christ’s command to love each other.

Only when we forgive will we unburden ourselves of the extra baggage we carry around in our daily relationships. It gets in the way of our family, friends and marriages. When you forgive you put down that extra baggage so that your arms are free to embrace those you have been angry with. In Christ and through Christ we have a wonderful opportunity of learning a radical forgiveness that can only be practiced in consequence of being radically forgiven.    the Rev

01 Forgive (It’s important)

• Resolve Guilt

• Quench Anger

• Fulfil Law

Exercises

• Discuss the difference between godly and worldly sorrow (2 Cor 7:10)

• Discuss in what way Christ’s yoke is light, give personal examples (Matt 11:28-30).

• Discuss the connection between unforgiveness and the different forms of anger.

• Discuss why it can be hard to forgive? Luke 11:4

• Share how you will learn to love people by developing a forgiving spirit.   

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for removing my debt of guilt towards you through the forgiveness I enjoy in Christ. Thank you for being so generous. Forgive me for underestimating the importance of forgiveness. Help me grow in my ability to seek your forgiveness and to forgive people. Teach me not to dwell in worldy sorrow but come to you when I’m guilty. Enable me to experience the freedom I have in Christ, for his yoke is light, Amen.  This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it