Friends, the holidays are upon us, though I’m not too excited for the accompanying shorter days and colder weather. The subject of this week’s blog is something that I believe is vitally important to your success and ability to live a fulfilling life. Forgiveness is often a misunderstood thing, especially in its significance to a joyful life. Most of the time we think about forgiving those who have injured us in some way, and this is crucial, but it is just as important to be able to forgive ourselves when we have failed or done something wrong. It may often be the harder thing to do, and I am reminded of this every day on my own journey.
Most would probably agree that the ideal purpose of life is to learn and grow, not just physically, but emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually. Most would also agree that often the lessons best learned are those that come after a major mistake or failure.
When one ventures out into the unknown, it is normal to make mistakes. A crucial component to moving forward from these mistakes is the self-forgiveness we so often struggle with. True self-forgiveness is a key component to developing healthy self-love.
As you attempt to achieve your goals in any area of life, you will no doubt fail or not always achieve the outcome you were hoping for. Maybe your judgement was bad or maybe you know you didn’t do your best, and that is most often seen in the clearer lens of hindsight. But we must learn from our mistakes and learn to forgive ourselves in our journey to a healthy self-love.
Often our lack of self-forgiveness is clothed in the shame we may feel from the perceived judgement and opinions of others. Recently, a friend posted a recap of a sermon by a well-known pastor. Its theme was how bad it can be to always accept the title or name others put on you. The more we accept the negative views others have of us, or we perceive others have of us, the more we are focused on them. Self-forgiveness and self-acceptance become very difficult, and a truly joyful life becomes illusive.
Friends, the hand we are dealt in life is never the one we envisioned for ourselves, but with healthy self-love and confidence, it is one we can learn to play with joy, hope, and love. Don’t let the judgments and negativity of others dictate your joy and happiness. When you can believe that you are worthy and that you have what it takes, you will receive that untold peace, and have confidence that the best is yet to come!