Another aspect of interior freedom is forgiveness. When we hold onto things, they can keep us wrapped up tight inside, unfree, unable to respond how we might want to – and not just to that person, but to others, to God, to ourselves. In his book Interior Freedom, Jacques Philippe says this: “Hard as it is, we need to learn to forgive other people for making us suffer or disappointing us, and even to accept the problems they create for us as graces and blessings. The attitude is neither spontaneous nor natural, but it is the only one by which to achieve peace and interior freedom.” And what is forgiving (because we know it is not pretending nothing happened or even reentering relationship in exactly the same way as it was before)? Philippe says this: “Forgiving means saying: 'This person has wronged me, but I don’t want to condemn him; I don’t want to identify him with his fault; I don’t want to take justice into my own hands. God is the only one who ‘searches mind and heart.'" Where do you sense an invitation here? Is there someone you want to release from something you’re holding against them? Talk to God about what your next steps to interior freedom are in relation to this particular relationship or wound. (And may your soul find the freedom it desires.)

Posted by Jamie Bonilla at 2021-10-15 13:49:57 UTC