Theme of The Day: Choosing Forgiveness Over Bitterness
Wednesday lands right in the middle of everything, including that ongoing tension with someone who hurt you last week, last month, or last year. The wound still stings when you think about it, and part of you wants to nurse that grievance because it feels justified.
Today’s theme tackles one of the hardest commands in Scripture: forgiving people who haven’t earned it, don’t deserve it, and might not even want it.
We’re exploring what forgiveness actually means when it’s not just a nice idea but a gut-wrenching choice to release someone who wronged you.
Not because they’ve apologized enough or proven they’ve changed, but because holding onto bitterness is poisoning you more than it’s punishing them. These verses will challenge your right to stay angry and invite you into the freedom that only forgiveness can unlock.
Bible Verses Of The Day: Morning Study
“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”
Colossians 3:13 New International Version (NIV)
Meaning of Colossians 3:13 and How to Apply It
Paul uses “anechomai” for “bear with,” meaning to endure or put up with, acknowledging that people will annoy and hurt you. “Forgive” employs “charizomai,” which comes from “charis” (grace), meaning to show grace or freely give favor. “Grievance” is “momphe,” indicating a complaint or reason for blame. The command to forgive “as the Lord forgave you” shifts the standard from whether they deserve it to how much you’ve been forgiven.
Start your Wednesday morning by identifying who you’re holding a grudge against. Maybe it’s someone who betrayed your trust, criticized you unfairly, or caused pain they never acknowledged. Apply this by measuring your grievance against what Christ forgave you for. Not to minimize your pain, but to gain perspective: if God forgave you for rebelling against Him, can you forgive someone for their offense against you? Forgiveness doesn’t mean what they did was okay; it means you’re releasing your right to punish them for it.
Bible Verses Of The Day: Afternoon Study
“Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, ‘Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.'”
Matthew 18:21-22 English Standard Version (ESV)
Meaning of Matthew 18:21-22 and How to Apply It
Peter thought he was being generous by suggesting seven times, but Jesus multiplies that by eleven, using “hebdomekontakis hepta,” which could mean seventy-seven or seventy times seven (490). Either way, Jesus isn’t giving a new quota but essentially saying forgiveness has no numerical limit. The point isn’t tracking offenses until you hit the magic number, but developing a heart that reflexively extends grace regardless of how many times you’ve been hurt by the same person.
This Wednesday afternoon, when someone who’s hurt you before does it again, your first instinct is probably: “I already forgave them once; I’m not doing this again.” Apply this by recognizing that forgiveness isn’t a one-time transaction but an ongoing posture of the heart. You might need to forgive the same person for the same offense multiple times as new layers of pain surface. That’s not failure; that’s honesty. Keep releasing them and the hurt, as many times as it takes for your heart to fully let go.
Bible Verses Of The Day: Evening Study
“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.”
Ephesians 4:31-32 New Living Translation (NLT)
Meaning of Ephesians 4:31-32 and How to Apply It
Paul lists a progression using “pikria” (bitterness), “thumos” (rage), “orge” (anger), “krauge” (brawling or outcry), and “blasphemia” (slander), showing how unforgiveness escalates from internal poison to external destruction. “Get rid of” uses “airo,” meaning to lift up and carry away completely, not just suppress or manage. The antidote is “chrestos” (kind), “eusplagchnos” (compassionate), and “charizomai” (forgiving), with the motivation anchored in how Christ forgave you.
As Wednesday evening settles in, do an honest inventory of what unforgiveness is doing to your soul. Bitterness isn’t just about the initial hurt but about the poison you keep drinking, hoping the other person will get sick. That resentment you’re nurturing? It’s not hurting them; they might not even know you’re still angry. But it’s absolutely destroying your peace, your joy, and your connection with God.
Apply this by recognizing that forgiveness is as much about your freedom as their guilt. When you choose to forgive, you’re not saying what they did was acceptable. You’re saying you refuse to let their actions continue poisoning your present and future. Release doesn’t mean reconciliation is automatic or that boundaries aren’t necessary. It means you’re no longer using their offense as justification for your bitterness.
End this Wednesday by making the hard choice to forgive someone specific. Say their name out loud if you need to: “I choose to forgive [name] for [specific offense]. I release my right to punish them and trust God to handle justice.” You might not feel it immediately, but forgiveness is a decision before it’s a feeling. Choose it today, and let your emotions catch up later.
Say This Prayer
Forgiving Father, thank You for extending grace to me when I deserved judgment. Help me remember how much I’ve been forgiven when I’m tempted to withhold forgiveness from others. Show me where I’m nursing bitterness, thinking it protects me when it’s actually poisoning me. Give me the courage to release people who’ve hurt me, not because they deserve it but because I need freedom more than I need revenge.
Teach me that forgiveness isn’t weakness but strength, not forgetting but choosing not to use their offense against them anymore. When the same person hurts me repeatedly, help me keep extending grace without keeping score. I want to get rid of all bitterness and be kind and compassionate, just as You’ve been to me.
In Jesus’ forgiving name, Amen.