HOT! HOT! HOT! Whew! The weather is hot! It is that time of year when it has become almost unbearable to spend an extended amount of time outdoors. Thankfully, it is also the time of year for watermelons! My favorite fruit! I love being able to eat a cool, juicy, delicious watermelon on an August day. However, I do not love it so much if it is not a seedless watermelon. I do not like the extra effort a watermelon with seeds makes me exert. Every bite requires me to have to spit seeds out, and if I am not outside, it requires me to have to take the effort to find a container to spit them in. It makes me so happy going to the grocery and being able to buy a hassle free, seedless watermelon.
In our lives, we sometimes go through situations that leave little black specks on our heart, just like those dreaded black seeds in an otherwise perfect watermelon. When people we invest time, effort, and energy into say things or do things that hurt us, we have a tendency to avoid them due to the blemishes, or black spots. We go on the search for people who appear spotless… or seedless. We keep that feeling of betrayal inside us, so that we remember not to trust that individual again. However, this is not the way we were instructed to live our lives. Matthew 6:14 states "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly father will also forgive you." The lesson of forgiveness is a very difficult lesson to learn because it requires us to let go of our pride in order to let the wrongdoing go. Forgiveness is an opportunity for growth. Just like those black seeds take some effort, once they are "let go", they hold with them the opportunity to let something new grow and flourish. So, take this opportunity that has been afforded you. Go to a brother or sister who has wronged you, forgive them, let the situation go, and watch the things God will let flourish in your life.
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