Perhaps the wound is old. A parent abused you. A teacher slighted you. A mate betrayed you...And you are angry.

Or perhaps the wound is fresh. The friends who owes you money just drove by in a new car. The boss who hired you with promises of promotions has forgotten how to pronounce your name....And you are hurt.

Part of you is broken, and the other part is bitter. Part of you wants to cry, and part of you wants to fight...There is a fire burning in your heart. It's the fire of anger.

And you are left with a decision. "Do i put the fire out or heat it up? Do i get over it or get even? Do i release it or resent it? Do i let my hurts heal, or do i let hurt turn into hate?"...

Unfaithfulness is wrong. Revenge is bad. But the worst part of all is that, without forgiveness, bitterness is all that is left.

The Lord hates what evil people do,
but He loves those who do what is right.
Proverbs 15:9

-Applause of Heaven

It's not the circumstances that make us. Our identities need not be built on our IQ scores, what school we went to, what friends we have, how beautiful others say we are, how many cars or money we have, whether we lost a parent or a sibling, whether we had our heart broken, whether we had a string of broken relationships, whether others step over us and take us for granted, or whether our parents or friends showed love to us.

It is the choices that we make, that makes us. I choose to build my identity on who God says I am. I choose to accept that what He said is true. I choose to go to Him to release my anger and pain. I choose to receive and accept His comfort and healing. I choose to love others. I choose to love myself. I decide that i do not want to be a victim of my circumstances anymore. I choose to let God's love fill this need for love inside me instead of relying on people only. I choose to understand that i'm flawed and people are not perfect. I choose to forgive. I choose to accept. I choose wisdom. I choose life.

Modernism, the age of reason and logic. What makes 24,000 people lay down their lives for God and give money to the church? What makes people cry when they go to church and sing songs? What makes people turn 180 degrees to God? What makes people backslide? What makes people consider suicide?

Society doesn't provide adequate answers. To them, religion is manmade and is a good thing because it is an imaginary opiate to the hopelessness that plagues mankind. When people cry, it's because they're emotional. When people turn to God, it's because they're naive and simple-minded to not have figured out that religion is just a set of rules that others can follow without committing to a religious institute or even having to donate money weekly. To them, people backslide because there is no God. To them, people commit suicide because they have no recourse.

Why don't you ask those 24,000 people? Why don't you ask those who cry? Why don't you ask those converts? Why don't you ask people who have backslided? Why don't you ask those who attempted suicide or are suicidal? Their answers will surprise you. Don't just accept all the answers that others provide, think and seek out the answers. Seek out the answers.