By Adele M. Gill   |   Silver Lining Ministries

                    "Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.                    Forgive, and you will be forgiven."

Luke 6:37

Feeling like a victim can, and eventually will, negatively impact your relationships, livelihood, mental health, and certainly your physical health. In actuality, hard as it is to believe, but the lack of forgiveness, that most often fuels feeling like a victim, can easily cause unnecessary stress and torment leading to sleepless nights, depression, anxiety, and can even make you physically sick. Heart attacks and other cardiac conditions. Autoimmune conditions. Lowered immunity and infections. Skin conditions like psoriasis. Asthma flare-ups. Diabetic complications. Ulcers and other gastric conditions. And the list goes on…

So what can we do when we recognize that we are feeling like, or behaving like, a victim?

• Take a deep breath.
• Remind yourself that it’s all temporary in this life.
• When you recognize you are struggling, check and see if you are feeling like a victim.
• Console yourself by saying, “It is what it is.”
• Try not to expect an apology or judge the other person. Forgiveness does not depend on what other others do; it’s an inside job.
• Always try to give others a pass. Certainly you’ve made mistakes in the past, too…
• Pray for yourself to be able to forgive others, and for anyone who has ever hurt you in any way—friend or foe.

When you look at the long-term effects of being a victim through the eyes of faith, you soon realize that the two are incompatible—regardless of circumstances. For faith and forgiveness cannot coexist with hatred, fear, and feeling like a victim. Choosing faith in Jesus Christ over being a victim is a life-giving, life-changing choice each of us needs to make every day.

Let today be the day you stand tall, walk away from victimhood, and choose faith. After all--who could possibly feel like a victim, with Jesus—the Greatest Hope the World Has Ever Known--by their side???

© Copyright 2021   |   Adele M. Gill

~ About the Author ~

Adele M. Gill, is a retired RN/BSN, certified Chaplain serving in Outreach Ministry. She is the recipient of the 2021 Firebird Book Award for her new self-help book, 'How to Go from Broken to Blest.’ This AWARD WINNING BOOK is written for anyone who is struggling in any way, and is now available at Amazon