The human body is one amazingly intricate system, perfectly designed to heal itself. Our skin regenerates, bones mend, and the immune system fights off viruses and bacteria. The self-repair mechanism is a foundational part of our biology. When we get injured or get sick, our body immediately starts the process of healing. White blood cells rush to fight infection, blood clots to stop bleeding, and new cells replace the damaged ones.
There is no illness, no disease, no symptom that can go against the principle that the body is wired to heal. The body only knows the function of recover, repair, and heal. It’s a beautiful redemptive picture that no matter how far gone we are - restoration and healing are in our DNA.
There is only one thing that comes in the way of the body healing – whether naturally or miraculously - and that is bitterness. The body CANNOT heal, and there CANNOT be a miracle if there is bitterness in the way.
Bitterness comes from anger, hurt, shame, offence, resentment, unforgiveness that’s left undealt with. It can be big or small, inconsequential or major. It doesn’t have to look like a shrivelled hate-spewing old person. It can look like tiny offences to the heart and mind stored over time. It can be against someone or against yourself. But no matter who the bitterness is aimed at, you're the one who ends up carrying its weight and feeling its effects.
It stores in the body and prevents the natural flow of the mind, to the heart to the body. It festers and causes an acid like state in our body that can present as many ailments like stomach issues, arthritis, lymphatic and circulation issues, just to name a few but AKA bitterness can equal blockage.
You can do every health protocol, follow an anti -inflammatory diet, spend money on supplements, remove environmental triggers, (all helpful and not bad) but if you don’t address the bitterness inside, you will always have that root cause switched on, causing an ongoing burning anguish inside.
So what is the antidote for bitterness?
Forgiveness.
Forgiveness is not just an airy fairy, mental choice - it's also an actual physical experience.
It is a scientific fact that forgiveness is the only remedy in the entire universe capable of breaking the chemical bonds of hostility, anger, and offense held in the physical body. Forgiveness is the act that cuts the chains binding you to a painful past that subconsciously covers your mind, weighs on your heart and manifests as a symptom. I’m really feeling challenged to express this clearly. Maybe because it’s actually a truth experienced more than explained.
So how do you understand forgiveness in order to receive it, give it and experience it?
It’s helpful to consider the different meanings of forgiveness: the root words are Salach (pardon), Kapar (cover), and Nasa (lift). Salach is about forgiveness in the sense of being released from paying back. Kapar implies that the act is over with and in the past. In my mind this forgiveness is easier to accept and grateful to receive!
Nasa, which means "lift," represents a deeper and more challenging depth of forgiveness. It's about letting go and allowing the weight of shame, offence, anger, bitterness to lift off us. This is harder to experience because we often feel we (or someone else) do not deserve it. It’s harder because we have to choose this forgiveness.
But this is the level of forgiveness that is THE antidote for bitterness. This is the forgiveness that has the capacity to reach the depths of the physical effects of bitterness and break the chains.
When we understand, grasp and accept Nasa, we allow ourselves to experience forgiveness in a tangible, physical sense. The heavy weight is lifted off, not because it magically disappears but because NASA forgiveness lifts it off and bears it. Forgiveness is not forgetting but it’s not having to bear the burden.
So what can we “do” to receive this kind of forgiveness. There are many activities like forgiveness affirmations, prayer, journaling, reconciliation steps, empathy, creating a forgiveness plan etc but the one I want to focus on is meditating. Now before you freak out, I’m not meaning meditation like zoning out. That’s actually not what meditating is. The root word for meditation is actually imagination.
We see words in pictures not in alphabetical letters. So we need to close our eyes and picture the lift off, the boulder being removed off us. We need to imagine the feeling of freedom and weightless ease. I imagine me letting go and God coming down and lifting the boulder off me and that sense of relief brings forgiveness and peace. He bears our burdens which means He lifts the weight of guilt and shame and fills it with a Comforter.
In summary, it's crucial to understand that while physical symptoms can stem from environmental issues or sudden incidents, often the real root cause is bitterness. This deeply entangling emotion might be the underlying factor or the last straw that tips you over. Please think about what's been said in this blog and reflect on your own situation. If you find yourself struggling with forgiveness, remember I'm here to help share your load, but also being open to a spiritual antidote is a powerful tool for receiving full forgiveness. You need to open your heart to let it go, casting all your heartache off yourself. When you can accept that it's no longer your burden to carry, lifting it off then creates the space for freedom in your spirit soul and then your body.