WHY DO YOU STILL FEED THE BEAST? Part Seven — The Courage to Forgive

 

WHY DO YOU STILL FEED THE BEAST?

Part Seven — The Courage to Forgive

By Reverend Michael Cook, D.Div.
Red Bull Illuminati Ministry

Among all the virtues humanity admires, perhaps none is more misunderstood than forgiveness.

Many people believe forgiveness means pretending that nothing happened.

Others believe it means excusing injustice.

Some believe it means allowing themselves to be hurt over and over again.

True forgiveness is none of these.

Forgiveness does not erase the past.

It does not deny pain.

It does not ignore accountability.

Instead, forgiveness is the moment we refuse to let yesterday continue controlling tomorrow.

It is the moment we stop feeding the Beast.

The Beast loves resentment.

It feeds upon old wounds.

It whispers into our hearts,

"Remember what they did."

"Never let it go."

"Make them suffer as you suffered."

"Carry your anger forever."

Every time we replay the injury without seeking healing, the Beast grows stronger.

Not because another person gains power over us...

But because we surrender our own peace.

Hatred is a strange prison.

Many people believe they are punishing someone else, when in reality they are imprisoning themselves.

The person who hurt them may have long moved on.

Yet the wound continues living within the one who refuses to heal.

Forgiveness breaks those chains.

Not because the past changes.

But because we change.

Some wounds are deep.

Some betrayals leave scars that last a lifetime.

Some losses cannot be replaced.

Forgiveness does not ask us to deny those realities.

It simply asks us a question.

"Will you allow this pain to become your identity?"

Pain is part of being human.

Remaining trapped within pain is a choice we often do not realize we are making.

Imagine carrying a heavy stone everywhere you go.

At first, it feels manageable.

After weeks...

It becomes exhausting.

After years...

You forget what life felt like without its weight.

Many people carry invisible stones.

Old arguments.

Broken relationships.

Childhood wounds.

Regret.

Shame.

Failures.

Words spoken decades ago.

The Beast quietly whispers,

"Keep carrying them."

The Light gently asks,

"Are you ready to put them down?"

Putting them down does not mean pretending they never existed.

It means recognizing that your future deserves more attention than your past.

One of the greatest acts of courage is choosing healing when revenge feels easier.

Revenge promises satisfaction.

But rarely delivers peace.

Hatred promises strength.

Yet leaves the soul exhausted.

Forgiveness asks something much greater.

It asks us to become free.

This freedom is not granted by another person.

It cannot be purchased.

It cannot be demanded.

It is discovered within.

There are times when forgiveness also requires wisdom.

Not every relationship should be restored.

Not every harmful situation should be revisited.

Forgiveness does not require abandoning healthy boundaries.

You may forgive someone...

And still choose not to return to an unhealthy relationship.

You may release bitterness...

While still seeking justice where justice is necessary.

Wisdom and compassion walk together.

The Beast tries to separate them.

The Light brings them back into harmony.

Perhaps the greatest person we must learn to forgive...

Is ourselves.

How many people spend years condemning themselves for mistakes they can no longer change?

How many dreams have died beneath the weight of guilt?

How many beautiful lives remain hidden because someone believes they are no longer worthy?

The Light says otherwise.

Every sunrise announces another beginning.

Every breath offers another opportunity.

Every day invites us to become more than we were yesterday.

The past may explain us.

It does not have to define us.

If we continue feeding regret...

Regret grows.

If we continue feeding guilt...

Guilt grows.

If we continue feeding self-hatred...

The Beast quietly smiles.

But if we begin feeding hope...

Hope grows.

If we begin feeding mercy...

Mercy grows.

If we begin feeding compassion...

Healing begins.

The strongest people are not those who never suffer.

They are those who refuse to allow suffering to destroy their capacity to love.

Forgiveness is not weakness.

It is one of the highest expressions of inner strength.

It says,

"What happened to me matters."

"But it will not become the ruler of my life."

Every act of forgiveness weakens the Beast.

Every act of mercy strengthens the Light.

One day, each of us will stand at a crossroads.

One path leads deeper into bitterness.

The other leads toward peace.

The road toward peace is rarely the easiest.

But it is always the one that leads us home.

So today...

Release one burden.

Forgive one hurt.

Speak one word of peace.

Extend one act of mercy.

Not because the world deserves it...

But because your soul deserves freedom.

For the Beast survives through resentment...

But the Light grows through forgiveness.

Peace, Light, and Understanding to All.

— Reverend Michael Cook, D.Div.
Red Bull Illuminati Ministry