Forgiveness might be one of the hardest things God ever asks us to do. Because when somebody hurts you — really hurts you — everything in your flesh wants to hold on to it. To keep score. To make sure they know what they did and that you haven’t forgotten.

But unforgiveness is a prison. And the worst part? You’re the one locked inside it.

Ephesians 4:31-32 cuts straight to it — “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

Just as God forgave you. That’s the standard. And if you sit with that for a moment, it’s both convicting and liberating at the same time.

Here’s what forgiveness is not — it’s not saying what they did was okay. It’s not pretending the hurt never happened. It’s not even necessarily trusting that person again. Forgiveness is releasing your right to be the judge. It’s handing the situation over to God and saying — I trust You to handle this better than I ever could.

Bitterness is heavy. It poisons everything it touches — your joy, your peace, your relationships, your walk with God. You can’t move forward dragging all that weight behind you.

Joseph had every human reason to be bitter. His brothers threw him in a pit, sold him into slavery, and lied to their father about it for years. But when the moment of reckoning came, Joseph didn’t reach for revenge. He said what his brothers meant for evil, God meant for good.

That’s the power of forgiveness. It reframes your story.

Somebody hurt you. That’s real. But don’t let what they did determine where you end up. Let it go. Not for them — for you.

Freedom is on the other side of forgiveness.

-Terrence Burton