This is the year that I decided to read through the entire Bible. I realized that it’s something I haven’t done before, so why not start now. I’m not gonna lie. In the beginning, when I started on January 1st, I thought, “Ugh, that’s so many chapters.” The amount to read each day felt overwhelming. But, now I read and reach the end of the readings for the day. I think to myself, “Wow, that’s it!” I finished Genesis yesterday and today starts Exodus. I listen to the podcast of “Revive Our Hearts with Nancy Demoss Wolgemuth”. If you’ve never listened, I encourage you to. They had a lady named Jane Wilund on the show. She wrote a book about how to ease into reading the Bible. Someone asked her if she realized when she first started reading that it’s one long continuous story? It’s a precious story. It not only tells us how we as Christians (true believers who have a relationship with Christ). It also shows us that even through hardship, testing, joyous moments, and more, God was right there the whole time.

I read through Genesis. The story of Joseph with the coat of many colors struck me. In chapter 50:19-20a it says, “But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear. Am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant ever against me, but God meant if for good.”

Now some context, I’m sure we all remember how Joseph was Jacob’s favorite son, and the other brothers were jealous. So they decided to throw him into a pit, but then ended up selling him. Joseph was sold, then in prison, and I’m sure he wondered at times “why me?” But, God was with him every step of the way. Joseph’s brothers meant this all to harm him. Still, God used it for his glory. He sent Joseph where he needed to be at just the right time to save the people from the famine.

Forgiveness is hard, really hard. Joseph didn’t ridicule his brothers for their actions. He embraced them a couple chapters before. He wept with them. After their father Jacob died, they were afraid. They thought he would get his revenge on them for what they did. Instead, he told them not to be afraid.

I put a note in my Bible “What would’ve happened to the people if God didn’t send Joseph there?

Sometimes we are so hurt by someone that it’s hard to get past it. Forgiving someone doesn’t mean we will forget what they’ve done, it will always be there. But, to me, forgiving someone means I’m making the decision to look past it and move on. I choose not to wallow in the wrong that was done. Whether the person has asked for forgiveness or not, we have to make the decision to forgive them. It’s hard, I know. Things get brought to mind of what someone did to me. But I can’t wallow in it. But, if we wallow in it and hold on to that grudge, who are we hurting? Only ourselves.

There’s a book I read to a kid once. One of the pages is on forgiveness and it says, “Forgiving people can be hard to do. We might feel angry and not want to. But when God is our friend, love always wins, so we must forgive each other’s sins.”

It’s so simple, yet so hard all at the same time.

May we all find it in our hearts to forgive.