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we have lived our lives. And it asks us when we recognise
moments or times when we have hurt others, or taken advantage of

them, to lay these moments down.

This laying down is non meant to be a passing over of the incident.
It is not an attempt to simply forget. I believe, that in the laying
down we are also invited to confess those things in our
relationships with others that we have failed at, and then seek to
change and become better people.

But alongside this there is also a responsibility for us when we are
the injured, or wounded, party. Because when we are hurt,
however it may occur, it is easy for us to become aggrieved and to
hold on to the wounds that we feel. The problem is that when we do
this, we only damage ourselves. Holding on to a wound does
nothing more than prevent that wound from healing, when what we
most need is healing.

Just as we need to lay down the hurt that we cause others, so too,
we need to lay down our hurt, our pain, and our wounds that have
been caused by others. For it is only when, together, we each lay
down the pain we have caused and the pain that we hold that we
can truly begin to move forward and rebuild relationships that have
been broken. It takes an effort of will and a desire to do. It is
something that we have to work at, but it is the way of Christ.

May we all be willing to lay down those things that we have done to
others, and may we also be able to lay down the hurt we hold on to,
so that, with God’s strength and guidance we might be able to
continue to walk in God’s way and play our part in building his
kingdom.

In His name,

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