A Major Cause of Emotional Sickness
March 14, 2025
Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Ephesians 4:32 NLT
According to research and psychological discoveries, unforgiveness is widely considered one of the most significant contributors to poor emotional health. Holding onto grudges and resentment is directly connected to increased stress, anxiety, depression, and overall negativity, significantly impacting a person's wellbeing and quality of life. Forgiveness or its absence is a major factor in emotional health.
Not only will the individual personally experience these negative factors, but unforgiveness can negatively impact relationships with others, causing tension and conflict. The emotional stress of unforgiveness can even manifest in physical health problems like high blood pressure, digestive issues, headaches, and a weakened immune system. The news is all bad when it comes to unforgiveness, and emotional health takes an especially hard hit.
Besides all those complications from a lack of forgiveness, there is the component of spiritual health and maturity. Two factors make forgiveness imperative for emotional health. First, our entire relationship with God is based on us receiving and accepting forgiveness for the sin that prevents us from relationship with God. Through forgiveness, the broken relationship is restored, and we have peace with ourselves and peace with God.
Then, God has made it clear that our relationship with Him also directly impacts our relationships with others. When Jesus taught His followers to pray, He directed us to ask our heavenly Father to “forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.” In other places as well as Ephesians 4:32, we are reminded that forgiving others as God through Christ forgave us is our responsibility.
Because God has created us with the need and desire for peace with God, ourselves, and others, we can never find emotional health with gaps in our lives created by lack of forgiveness. You don’t have to live very long before you are hurt badly enough to feel justified in not forgiving. But this isn’t emotionally healthy or wise. Very painful things can happen to us in life. But the only way to be emotionally healthy and enjoy our future is learning to forgive.
Forgiveness is not a feeling. It’s a choice. Once we make the decision to forgive, our emotions eventually calm down; hurt and anger begin to subside. When we forgive, we get peace in our hearts, and peace is emotional health.
- Jesus, help me seek and extend forgiveness and live in peace with You, others, and myself.