John 11:43 – 44 Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”  The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”

Has something terrible happened in your life that has left you sad, broken, angry and unable to function? Are you completely bound or paralyzed by this turn of events? What do you do? How do you regain your perspective?

Begin at the beginning. Confess to God where you fell short. Tell him what you did or should have done but did not. Tell him what your intentions were because even though he knows you need to say it – it might surprise you. Were you seeking your good, the good of others or were you deliberately trying to undermine someone and it has backfired?  Ask God to forgive you. He is bound by his word to do so. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”  (1 John 1:9). Feeling stronger already? You should, because the grave clothes are falling off you and resurrection life is taking hold. There is nothing like the renewal and freedom that comes from being cleansed and forgiven!

Or is it that someone has hurt you? You are innocent of wrongdoing but you have been accused anyway. God knows that too. He is just and will vindicate you in due time. Get deeper into his Word. Have conversations with him. He will begin to show you a way forward. Seek help if you think you need to share – your Pastor, your spouse, perhaps another believer, someone whom you can trust. Remember, Lazarus needed someone to unwind the grave clothes. Ultimately though it is God you need to trust to resurrect you from within. Seek to forgive. It is God’s will that you do so.

“I am the Lord God Almighty, the God of now and forever. My people who are called by my name are always before me. Nothing happens to them of which I am not aware. I order their steps. They may fall into disobedience and earn chastisement. But once that is executed, it is my joy to restore them, wash them, make them clean and start all over again. My grace and mercy toward them is everlasting but I need them to always repent of wrong doing.”