SCRIPTURE: And when you stand praying, forgive if you have ought against any that your father which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses but if you do not forgive neither will your father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses. – Mark 11:25-26. THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: “Unforgiveness” is one of the worst attacks on spirituality From our anchor scripture, we understand that forgiveness is necessary for the effectiveness of prayer. In other words, your prayer is useless until you forgive and get rid of offences. Unforgiveness is one of the worst attacks on spirituality. The bait of offence is what the enemy uses to destroy the prayer life of God’s people. The truth is, whenever the devil does not know what to do about you, he will send people to offend you. One man who repented from the occult confessed that whenever they wanted to destroy Christians and did not know how to handle them, they would send people to annoy them and through annoyance, they could easily access their lives. If you want to have access to God in the place of prayer, you must deal completely with the spirit of unforgiveness. Now, what does it mean to forgive? 1. It means to give up resentment. For instance, you were resentful and angry but decided to give it up. Forgiveness means ceasing to feel resentful. 2. It means to cease from bitterness and grudges. That is to say, “I was bitter before, I was angry with you before, but now I have stopped being bitter and bearing grudges.” 3. It means to excuse the fault of others. This is a situation where someone says, “Okay, I assume he must have been under pressure that was why he acted like that,” and that settles it. 4. It means to write it off. As in writing off a debt, you can write off the obligation of others by virtue of their offences towards you. Remember this: Unforgiveness is one of the worst attacks on spirituality. ASSIGNMENT(S): 1. Check your life if you are embittered against anyone. 2. Release anyone you are holding in bitterness or “unforgiveness” in your heart. PRAYER: Help me LORD, to release everyone I am holding grudges against in my heart in Jesus’ Name. DAILY READING: Daniel 2:24 to 3:30, 1 Peter 4:7 to 5:14, Psalms 119:81 to 96, Proverbs 28:15 to 16. QUOTE: Our ability or inability to forgive affects our lives in eternity. Culled from AM I BITTER? by Dr Becky Enenche