Struggling to Forgive? ~ Guest Post and Giveaway by Cathy Bryant!

 

Struggling to Forgive?

Is there any person on the planet that doesn't struggle from time to time with the issue of forgiveness? Our mandate to forgive others as God forgave us doesn't come naturally, especially when the offense is personal and deep and the offender expresses no remorse. Sometimes the offenses continue to happen, one after another, stacking on top of us until we're unsure whether or not we can dig out from beneath it all.

Fiction writers are taught to ask "What if?" when it comes to writing stories. Once I knew forgiveness would be the spiritual theme of my latest Miller's Creek novel, A BRIDGE UNBROKEN, I asked this question: What if a man and woman who once loved each other--but who both bear scars at the hand of the other--are thrown into a situation where they have to work closely together?

Imagine your worst enemy. Someone who hurt you so deeply that you've struggled to get past it and to move on with your life. Then just as you start to pick up the pieces and put your life back together, you're thrown into a work environment with this person you once cared deeply for. That is the scenario for a frightened runaway named Dakota Kelly and the man who left scars on her heart, Chance Johnson. Here's the book description:

Letting go to build a bridge…

Dakota Kelly wants her painful past to disappear. A plan to start afresh is derailed when she co-inherits her late grandfather’s farm with Chance Johnson, the man responsible for the scars on her heart. But Chance isn’t the only ghost from the past. Someone else is out to get her and will stop at nothing to get what he wants. Will Chance and Dakota lay aside their grudges to restore the old farmhouse and bridge, or will evil forces sabotage their attempt at forgiveness?

I love the metaphor of a bridge for the topic of forgiveness. It only seemed appropriate to have Chance and Dakota restore a broken down bridge in the story. And isn't that a perfect example of what Christ has done for each of us? Through laying down His life at the cross, He created a bridge of forgiveness that spans the gap between Holy God and sinful man.

Part of my research for the story involved studying the concept of forgiveness in the Bible. As I researched the topic, I realized how many of the world's definitions of forgiveness have crept into even Christian circles. Things like: "Forgiveness is something you do for yourself" and "Forgive if..." Actually, the Biblical definition is a letting go, releasing, cancelling a debt, and it never comes with conditions attached. We forgive because we're forgiven, regardless of our feelings or desire for retribution.

During the writing of the story, I'd often phrase a question about forgiveness to social media friends and readers. It was then I realized how many people struggle with forgiving others and the misconceptions that abound. That led me to create a Bible study booklet on my scripture research. The study helped me in my own quest to forgive, and I firmly believe it can help others. Here's the book description for THE FRAGRANCE OF CRUSHED VIOLETS: FORGIVING THE INEXCUSABLE:

What do we do when a loved one, boss, co-worker, friend, or enemy seem determined to bring us down through an attack? How do we handle it when their assault is personal, public, deep, unjust, unfair, and unfounded? Take it one step further. How do we deal with meaningless acts of destruction and death, say in something similar to the Twin Towers incident or a school shooting, especially when the offender shows no remorse? Do we file it in our brains and rack it up to “one more senseless act” and chance to think that God somehow messed up?

In short, how do we move past the hurt and anger to a place of forgiveness?

Join us as we examine relevant scriptures about forgiveness and come away with a scriptural understanding of:

• what forgiveness is and what it isn’t
• God’s role in the process of forgiveness
• what Jesus did at the cross for each of us
• our mandate to forgive as we’ve been forgiven
• what gets in the way of forgiving others
• how to truly forgive

Many people have asked me about the title of the Bible study. It actually comes from my two favorite quotes about forgiveness:

"Forgiveness is the fragrance the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it." ~Mark Twain

"Being a Christian means forgiving the inexcusable because God forgave the inexcusable in you." ~C.S. Lewis

In my own life, I've learned that it is possible to forgive even the inexcusable, even though it's against our nature and usually difficult. But we can't do it on our own. Thankfully, God is faithful to give us His power in letting go of those hurtful experiences, enabling us to live victorious lives.

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Cathy Bryant enjoys spinning tales about Miller's Creek, Texas, where folks are friendly, the iced tea is sweet, and Mama Beth's front porch beckons. Her heart's desire is to write books about God's life-changing grace. When she's not writing, you'll find her rummaging through thrift stores or up to her elbows in yet another home improvement project in the mountain cabin she shares with her minister husband of over thirty years. You can find out more about Cathy and her books at CatBryant.com and Facebook.com/Cathy.Bryant.Author.

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DOUBLE BOOK GIVEAWAY! Cathy is offering an eBook giveaway bundle of A BRIDGE UNBROKEN and THE FRAGRANCE OF CRUSHED VIOLETS for one lucky reader. The eBook giveaway is open internationally and ends Thursday, June 26. 

P.S. Cathy would love to hear your thoughts and testimonies about forgiveness in the comments below. :) If you'd like to join the Facebook Book Chat for THE FRAGRANCE OF CRUSHED VIOLETS, you can do so HERE. If you'd like to join the LifeSword Bible study on forgiveness (Facebook group), you can do so HERE.

How to enter: Sign into the Giveaway Tools form below (it might take a moment to load) and submit each entry you complete. Commenting alone will not get you entered – you must click enter on the form. Happy entering!

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