Happy Monday! Our guest writer for this week is Dora Lozano. Dora was a guest writer for us in March of 2019 and I’m grateful that she is willing to serve in this capacity again. I believe you are in for a treat and pray the Lord will use these messages to speak to you.

“If you’re a hard worker and do a good job, you deserve your pay; we don’t call your
wages a gift. But if you see that the job is too big for you, that it’s something only God
can do, and you trust him to do it—you could never do it for yourself no matter how hard
and long you worked—well, that trusting-him-to-do-it is what gets you set right with God,
by God. Sheer gift.” – Romans 4:3-5 (MSG)

Forgiveness. The act of typing this word reminded me of the years that I lived in pain from a lifetime of hurt. I asked God over and over again, “How can I forgive them?”. The revelation came when I read the verse above.

Forgiveness is hard. It is too big for you and me to do, especially in the case of who we don’t want to forgive or who we think does not deserve to be forgiven. The truth? We didn’t deserve to be forgiven and God forgave us through the sacrifice of Christ (Colossians 2:13). We must TRUST that God will make everything right and give us the strength to extend forgiveness when we mistakenly believe it is too hard to forgive.

When I was steeped in my unforgiveness I began a list of my hurts. As I completed my
list, the Holy Spirit reminded me that Jesus experienced all of these pains and worse.

Me: Lord, they betrayed me!
HS: Jesus was betrayed. (Matthew 26:14-16)

Me: Lord, they abused me!
HS: Jesus was abused. (Matthew 27:27-30)

Me: Lord, they disrespected me!
HS: Jesus was disrespected. (Matthew 27:39-43)

Me: Lord, they broke my heart!
HS: Jesus body was broken on the cross. (Isaiah 53:5)

Do you know what Jesus did with all of this pain? HE FORGAVE THEM! (Luke 23:34)

Who do you need to forgive? Yourself? God? Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you those
hurts that are enslaving you to a life sentence of bondage. God’s power to heal you from a lifetime of pain is unmatched!

Prayer:
Lord, I am trusting you to help me get back into the right attitude with you. Show me
Lord where there is unforgiveness in my heart. Give me the strength to forgive so that I
can live in freedom and peace. Give me direction on a time, a place and whether
forgiveness should be offered in person, letter, and/or in tears in the privacy of our time
together. If I am to forgive face-to-face, give me wisdom to make sure that it is safe to
do so and to follow your guidance in coordinating this effort. There is no bondage in
you, you created us to live in peace that is unparalleled in this world. I CHOOSE TO
FORGIVE and breakdown the divide that is separating you and me. In Jesus name I
pray, Amen.

Dora’s Biography

Dora Lozano is a faithful follower of Christ living out her faith daily. Dora is the mother of two amazing children. The eldest is in their junior year at university. The youngest is heading in to their sophomore year of high school. Dora has spent twenty-nine years working in the California Community College system. Currently, Dora is an academic counselor for foster youth and homeless youth at a community college in Southern California. Dora’s personal mission statement is to “Love God, Do Good and Serve Others”. Dora lives out her mission through her work and in her faith community where she serves on the usher team. Dora enjoys spending time with her children and her sweet puppy dog. As a family they enjoy being loud and silly, listening to Korean pop music, taking road trips, making popcorn and watching movies. Dora is honored to be a guest contributor on the devotional for Mary E. White Ministries.

Do you have a prayer request? We would love to pray for you. Send your prayer request to:

prayerrequest@maryewhiteministries.com

Bible Reference: http://www.biblegateway.com

Devotion Written By: Dora Lozano

Photo Credit: Dora Lozano

Copyright© 2019 Mary E. White Ministries