Men, you know what it is like to be challenged by your wife in an area of your life, right.

I had it happen to me a while back as it seems I was becoming too negative and cynical over past ‘church’ involvements. I was wanting my pound of flesh as I felt people owed me for the wrongs they had done to me.

While ‘Da boss’ was lovingly encouraging me to deal with these past issues, God showed up on her side.

Come on, two against one isn’t fair.

As my wife was talking to me about this, I received a vision from God. The vision consisted of me trying to walk from a place filled with bushes and brambles down to a nice, sun-lit open field.

But my foot was hooked on a piece of barbed wire, an offense from my past, and I was being slowed down in my walk to this new place.

But more than that I was also trying to drag this barbed wire and brambles from my past down to my future.

That night during my devotions, I sensed that God was telling me to write down IOUs of all the things that I felt people, groups, and churches in my past owed me.

I ended up with several pieces of paper, written on both sides, listing all my grievances.

All these alleged offenses were now written down for posterity.

The next day, I took these slips of paper down to a fire pit that I had in my backyard.

I started a good fire and when it was hot enough, I threw all my IOUs into the flames. In seconds, they were turned into ashes.

I had a great prayer time as I asked God to forgive me, and as I forgave and blessed each one of those who had hurt me.

By the time it was done, the fire was out. All that was left was ashes and not even a CSI forensic team could find a trace of these past offenses.

It may seem like a mechanical thing to do, but I did it in obedience.

In this act, I was canceling all those offenses and debts I felt people owed me.

Now no one owes me anything. There is now no more barbed wire hanging around my right foot to trip me up.

I am free.

God then reminded me that after a fire, life quickly returns growing back healthy and green because of the ashes, as we read in Chronicles:

¹⁴ If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14 NKJV)

Several days after my bonfire, I was working in my backyard, and smiling as I walked by the ash pile, because I had a hard time, remembering what I had written down on those IOUs.

It was like I was trying to see clearly through a curtain.

Some may say it is due to my memory in old age, but I believe that boil has been lanced, and the infection was gone.