Growing Beyond Bitterness

9 I say to God, my rock: "Why have you forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? 10  As with a deadly wound in my bones, my adversaries taunt me, while they say to me all the day long, "Where is your God? ~Psalms 42:9-10 (ESV)

Just about everyone of us has been in situation that have made us bitter with someone. Someone else's actions or in action has caused us to be in a predicament that we just did not want to be in and as a result someone had to take the blame. Although it seems as if it is much easier to blame others and remain bitter, its not always as easy to examine your role in your affliction or  place blame were it truly belongs, with you.
Don't get me wrong people do things that hurt us all the time and bitterness may even be justified; but what we must all consider it that the decision to remain bitter forfeit your power to enjoy life. We waste energy holding on to somethings that we can not change and in most cases the other person goes on living, unbothered by our bitterness. I have spent years holding grudges against people and when I finally got up the nerve to deal with them the other person did not even remember this thing I have been clinging to for years.

​Until this day I have never understood why we choose to place blame and bitterness before we get to self examination and change. We find it easier to be angry at someone else before looking at our role in the situation. The truth is every action has an equal reaction. As I look back over my life, 80% of the situations that I choose to remain bitter over or not to forgive were ones where I was not free of guilt. Whether it be choosing the wrong friends, giving up my control in a situation, or just holding people to higher standard than I should have. I choose to be bitter rather than deal with my poor decisions and coping practices. It's coming down to the realization that the only behavior you have control over is your own. We can not change other and without God's help we cannot change ourselves.

Bitterness is defined as an anger and disappointment at being treated unfairly; resentment. As believers in Christ we must grow beyond these fleshly emotions and own our responsibility in these situations. There will always be thing that we can be bitter about but lets choose joy. Don't allow the enemy a foothold into our destiny. It's human to be angry but its godly to let go and evolve.
Blessings, 
Kay