Bury the Hatchet

In life there are always disagreements and conflicts. In haste we say or do things that we wish we could undo later. Sometimes when we resolve the conflict or at least agree to set it aside we say, "Let's bury the hatchet. Let's just forget about this confrontation." However, many times we don't really mean what we say and we leave the hatchet handle sticking out so that we can easily retrieve it later.

Thankfully, God doesn't work that way. When God says that he forgets our sins we can rest assured that He will never bring them up again and He will not hold them against us. Our enemy may bring them to mind in order to hold us in a prison of guilt, but as far as God is concerned the hatchet, handle and all, has been buried.

We would do well to pattern our forgiveness of others after God's forgiveness of us. As Matthew 5:7 says, "Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy." While we can't erase something totally from our memory, we can choose to set it aside. I can remember several situations and the people involved in them that offended me, but I have chosen to fully bury the hatchet as far as my relationship with those people is concerned. It is God's grace and mercy flowing from me to the other person that enables me to let go of the hatchet. Ask God to help you in this area. You will find that God's peace will be the result.