Day 18
Scripture: Genesis 3:15
“And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
and you will strike his heel.”
Story from the Blue Seats:
I was just a child when my father, a devout Muslim, told me I was no longer his daughter. My decision to follow Jesus was a wound to his faith and pride. His words were sharp and final: “You are no longer mine.” I felt crushed, like a tree severed from its roots. How could the man who gave me life cast me aside so easily?
For years, bitterness and pain festered in my heart. I wanted to scream, to make him understand, but his rejection left a void that nothing could fill. I clung to Jesus, the only anchor in my storm. I remembered the promise of redemption from the beginning: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel” (Genesis 3:15).
God had sent Jesus, His Son, as the ultimate sign of love and redemption, even for those who reject Him: “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). I was reminded that forgiveness was not just a command—it was a gift of grace that God Himself modeled.
One day, through tears and trembling, I prayed, “Lord, help me forgive him.” Slowly, God began softening my heart. I reached out to my father—not with arguments, but with love. A phone call. A letter. A quiet prayer for his well-being.
At first, there was silence. Then, a tentative response. Over time, God worked in ways I could not see. My father never accepted my faith, but he began to accept me again. His pride turned to curiosity, his anger to quiet conversations.
Through it all, I learned that forgiveness is not about erasing the hurt but allowing God’s redeeming love to flow through the cracks of our brokenness. Just as God overcame evil through Christ, He overcame the bitterness in my heart and transformed it into love.
Now, I am a vessel of His grace, continuing to love my father with the love God first showed me. Though our journeys are different, I hold fast to the hope of redemption that God promised long ago, the same hope that sustains us all.
Have you struggled to forgive someone who hurt you? Trust in God’s redeeming love—it is stronger than any wound and more powerful than any rejection.
