Isaiah 61:1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

You may not see forgiveness in this verse, but it is there along with many other things that hold you captive. He has come to set you free, to have liberty, to love freely. So often we think of liberty as being set free to do what we want. What we are set free from are entanglements that keep us from sharing the love which resides in us, Christ.

There is an ivy that grows at my door. It has these thorns that hurt if I try to pull out this covering that chokes off any good growth which I have planted. I have to protect my hands as I pull it out. Unforgiveness is exactly like that choking ivy, painful to remove but necessary for growth.

What holds you back from sharing the love of God with anyone who has wounded you? Unforgiveness.

Luke 11:4 And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.

Lord deliver us from unforgiveness, set us at liberty to love.