Loving Others Making Amends

As we recover from addiction, it is emotionally draining when we come to the place of acknowledging and dealing with the harm we have caused.  We’ve lived for a long time blaming others for the way they treated us.  What we fail to acknowledge is how our actions, resulting from the fear and anger bottled up inside us, caused harm to others. Regardless of the reason for our behaviour, we are encouraged to make a list of those we have harmed and become willing to make amends to all of them. 

Deep rooted unforgiveness results in angry outbursts and rage towards others.  Sometimes even those who genuinely love us suffer because of what is going on at a deep level within us.  We may feel sorry for what we did or said to a person after an abusive outburst, and perhaps have apologized, but to fully make amends we need to understand what causes us to behave as we do.  Unless we come to terms with the root of our problem we will again behave in the same way and cause even more harm. 

Making amends is a test of our integrity to honour others above ourselves.  Let’s consider who we are today and to whom we need to make amends.

Prayer: Gracious God, I ask that You heal me from the burden of the wounds and guilt that I have carried for so long. Help me to forgive those who have harmed me and also help me make amends to those I have harmed. Amen

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