FORGIVENESS: I will Forgive everyone, including those that have hurt me.
Being able and willing to forgive will fulfill empty spaces in one’s heart. It will help you understand the value of forgiveness. No matter the hurt someone might have caused, forgiveness will always recharge the weaknesses we tend to latch onto in life. Forgiveness might just be one of the best qualities any of us could possibly possess.
Here at Eagle Ranch Academy, we want to make sure our teens understand the value of forgiveness. If we are able to forgive people, it shows a whole new world of understanding someone else. The ability to do this will give you better perspectives. This relates back to honesty and accountability in a sense. We need to be honest with ourselves. We also need to be willing to forgive ourselves of the mistakes we’ve made. In order to forgive ourselves, we’ve got to own our mistakes, understand them, and learn from them.
Here are three steps that might give you some insight on Forgiveness.
Step 1: Understand why we forgive ourselves and others
What is forgiveness? How do we define it? I’m not too sure that you can define forgiveness, however, we do know that it’s great and can it can create miracles. To forgive is to forget. Often times we all get caught up in this life and forget how important it is to forgive what’s in the past. The past is the past and we have the future to look towards. Do we want to waste time holding grudges with sour frowns on our faces? Let’s get away from this and realize the wonders that come from a heart that forgives.
Step 2: Forgive yourself for the mistakes you’ve made
We can sit here and drown in our mistakes, but what do we learn from that? Mistakes are beautiful. We wouldn’t be able to understand the value of forgiveness without making mistakes. They are a learning process. They teach us things we never would’ve known had we not gone through the situation and it’s consequences. The most valuable lessons come from our faults in life. J.M. Barrie once said, “We are all failures – at least the best of us are.”
Step 3: Give people the benefit of the doubt, forgive them
I want to express why I think giving people the benefit of the doubt is extremely relevant to forgiveness. From the moment we meet someone, anyone, I think it’s safe to say that we shouldn’t judge them simply because we know nothing about them yet. Because we don’t know very much about them, the only option left is to automatically think good thoughts about them. My rule of thumb in life is to give people the benefit of the doubt, always. If they decide to take advantage of you or harm you, give them three chances. Third time’s a charm and if it’s not a charm then this person probably isn’t benefiting you in anyway. Once you’ve established the kind of person you think they are, expect that things may go wrong one day. We have to be prepared for the worst, but always hope for the best. Furthermore, if these people are in your life, then you most likely have a genuine love for them. This means you should be willing to forgive them if anything ever happens.
We are all under the impression that are close family and friends wouldn’t be the type to turn their backs on use, but in reality we will never know. We would also like to think very highly of ourselves and trust that we would never do something of that nature either, but life just happens. Sometimes we don’t have control over the obstacles put in front of us, but we are blessed in the sense that we have the power to control our reaction to any situation.
The more forgiving we can become, the more we will understand about ourselves and others. The more we can understand, the more apparent the value of forgiveness will become.
The Value of Forgiveness | Eagle Ranch Academy