Topic: Understanding the Source of Your Pain and Moving On [Joyce Meyer Devotional 28 June 2021]

Click HERE for Previous Devotionals

Exercise foresight and be on the watch to look [after one another], to see that no one falls back from and fails to secure God’s grace (His unmerited favor and spiritual blessing), in order that no root of resentment (rancor, bitterness, or hatred) shoots forth and causes trouble and bitter torment . . .— Hebrews 12:15 (AMPC)

When we allow unforgiveness in our lives, we are filled with resentment and bitterness. Bitterness refers to something that is pungent or sharp to the taste.

We remember that when the children of Israel were about to be led out of Egypt, they were told by the Lord to prepare a Passover meal that included bitter herbs. Why? God wanted them to eat those bitter herbs as a reminder of the bitterness they had experienced in bondage. Bitterness always goes hand in hand with bondage.

How does bitterness get started? It grows from a root, which The King James Version speaks of as a root of bitterness. A root of bitterness from the seed of unforgiveness always produces the fruit of bitterness.

Bitterness results from the offenses people commit against us that we don’t let go of—the things we rehearse over and over until they have become blown way out of proportion. The longer we allow them to grow and fester, the more deeply rooted they become. Learn to be quick to repent because the sooner you do it, the easier it is!

Prayer Starter: Lord, forgive me when I find myself angry and bitter over things in the past and help me to forgive quickly. In Jesus’ name, amen.