Forgiveness: The breakfast of champions
When we decide to live healthy, the first thing we examine is our eating habits. And, naturally, we start with the most important meal, breakfast!
Everyone knows that if we start the day off right, most often it will also end right. Therefore, we should closely scrutinize what we eat for breakfast. If we want to see improvement, we begin to make quality decisions by eliminating certain foods.
This same principle applies to healthy spiritual living. We must choose to let go of any spiritual “junk food” such as anger, resentment, hatred, retaliation… all of which are by-products of unforgiveness. Sadly, too many of us enjoy a steady diet of unforgiveness.
Lose the junk food
We MUST change our habits and adopt a new diet, starting with breakfast. Breakfast literally means to break our fast from the night before. Be willing to come out of darkness, put the past behind us and start fresh in the light of day.
Imagine the effects! Consuming unforgiveness is like mixing a little poison into your cereal every day! The toxins ultimately build up, destroy your health and lead to death.
Well, the same is true in the spiritual sense. As you continually feed on this spiritual poison, it distorts your perception of God, others, yourself and your circumstances.
Athletes are powered by a passion for success and they’re willing to make the tough choices it takes to reach their goals. They don’t just talk the talk. They walk the walk!
Eat like a winner
Champions diligently watch what they eat, refusing to defile themselves with the “junk food” of life. They’re focused on staying healthy so they can accomplish their goals.
Certainly, as champions of the faith, we need to do the same. Our passion makes us determined to eliminate anger and resentment from our diet. We ought to start every day with an attitude of forgiveness. It will fortify our spirit and make us unoffendable.
Forgiveness means to decide in advance (for = before time) to give mercy to those who step on our toes. It shouldn’t be a last minute struggle to decide to give forgiveness or not.
For champions of the faith, forgiveness is a lifestyle, a great way to start off every day!
Careful what you consume
Here’s some ways to eat the breakfast of champions.
- Guard against gossip and those who spread it. Don’t be someone else’s garbage bin. Tell them to take it to Jesus, not you.
- Guard your own lips. Don’t let poison spew out of them about others.
- Resolve conflict right away. Don’t allow your heart to get bitter. Choose to have an unoffendable heart.
- Don’t hold hurt it in your heart if issues don’t get settled immediately. Every conflict won’t get resolved right away. Instead, pray for the people who hurt you, and your heart will stay soft towards God and them.
- Choose the correct perspective. Recognize that God is working things out. Meanwhile, ask Him what He wants you to see or do in the situation.
Remember: You are God’s champion! So make sure you eat a “champion of the faith” breakfast daily! Mark 11:25 reminds us: “And whenever you stand praying, if you find that you carry something in your heart against another person, release him and forgive him so that your Father in heaven will also release you and forgive you of your faults” (The Passion Translation).…
