Pardon Me

The following is an excerpt from the book, 
"The Happiness Principle" by Randy and Elise Petersen:

When discussing the concept of forgiveness a very important component is often overlooked. I always tell those with whom I work that they must practice this part of forgiveness, if they wish to be successful in the defeat of darkness and the connection with light. When developing the virtue of forgiveness, there is one very important person that you must never neglect… yourself.

Within our work we refer to this as the three B’s of personal forgiveness and it is the first rule in achieving individual spiritual success:

•        Be kind to yourself

•        Be patient with yourself

•        Be forgiving of yourself

As we strive to better ourselves we will inevitably face challenges and with those challenges can come resistance from within ourselves in the form of negatively programmed spiritual energies. This destructive mind chatter may tell you that you can’t do it because (based on the past) you don’t have the strength or skills to succeed or that you don’t deserve happiness or that you are inherently incapable of such emotions. When you have small setbacks and failures, you may be bombarded with negative self-talk like, “What an idiot” or “You’re so stupid” or “This always happens; why do you keep trying?”

Don't believe these destructive lies. The fact is, you are going to fail. The road to ultimate success is paved with many failures.  You must try and fail many times before you will be able to develop the skills to be successful. The difference between failure in the past and failure now is that these failures should be much more productive. You now have powerful tools and a plan, and you are finally aware of the “whats” and the “whys” of that which you are trying to overcome. In order for this to work, you must be kind and patient with yourself. Yes, you will have setbacks but they are not the end of the world; instead they are part of the growth process. So be forgiving of your own personal failures and as soon as you can, get back up and try again.

This is not a license to excuse bad habits and poor character traits but it is permission to learn from, and let go of the past, and to eliminate the devastating trap of regret. To quote an overused phrase “the only people that can call themselves failures in this life are those that stop trying”. If you will be persistent and keep at it, in time you will succeed; and that’s a promise. Kindness, patience and forgiveness of self are a mandatory part of the process.

We can't achieve true and lasting happiness if we are holding grudges and ruminating over past hurts. Forgiveness releases us from the darkness of regret and revenge, and draws Father's love and light closer to us.

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