”I will say it again, it is impossible for you to forgive.”
No, no…not me, I didn’t say that. The Preacher on my car radio made that absurd claim.
My attention peeked when I heard him repeat it again. Lord, who is this man? This guy’s a nutcase; why is my local Christian Radio Station, allowing him to continue? Are they not convicted of this distorted truth?
Not wanting to hear anymore of this false preaching, I smugly reached for the off knob, but before I was able to send him into a deafened oblivion, he captured my attention once again.
“Wait…don’t dismiss what I am going to tell you next, hear me out.” Intrigued, I decided to wait just a little longer and give him a chance to correct himself.
Listen, people, I’m asking you to honestly think about those people who’ve hurt you. I don’t mean just naming those who’ve hurt you and merely “saying” you’ve forgiven them. I mean, have you forgiven them to the point where you’re no longer turned inside out when you think about their offense?
Okay, he’s got my curiosity on high alert, now. With one eyebrow raised, I looked at the radio, waiting for whatever it was, he was going to say next, and thinking, well, no, I can’t really say “that”.
He continues, “That’s because it is impossible. Try as you may, we are completely unable to genuinely forgive others, in our own power. That is why there are so many of us, wandering around in the confusion of saying we forgive, but still holding on to those offenses, and that inner turmoil is holding us back in our Christian walks.”
Woe…okay, go on. At that point, I had begun to audibly converse with my car radio.
“If you want to receive that complete forgiveness that the Bible teaches us, you have to first admit...
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...ely turned around, looked up into the sky at the angle of which I felt it had gone and realized what had happened. I heard God’s Holy voice saturate my inner being with, “It is done.”
If you have goose bumps, you should have been there!
The varied emotions associated with the remembrance of the acts of indecency forced upon me, were instantly vaporized; and I was filled with a depth of love and compassion for my brothers, I had never before felt for anyone. Definitely, not a human experience of love I had ever felt in my own power.
As I began praising God, and for the first time in my life, was thanking God, that I was the victim and not the perpetrator and did not have to live with the tormenting guilt they were enslaved to.
I began praying for their salvation that day, because now, I was only filled with God’s mercy for them, as His children also.
that no man was so guilty that God would not forgive him, but in order for that
One aphorism that hit me is “To learn to forgive yourself and to forgive others”. I had a few people in my life that had hurt me so much that I hated them. But, I was so miserable that I was not happy. I prayed to God to help me forgive them, a little by little I learned to forgive myself and then forgive them.
that I was in reality the monster that I am, I was filled with the bitterest sensations of despondence and mortification”
Forgiveness comes in many different points of views, it is not just a word but it’s how you see it mentally, feel it emotionally, and must acquire for yourself to move forward and be happier. In an interview that I saw on youtube with world famous writer Elizabeth Gilbert, she asserted that, “We forgive ourselves and not abuse ourselves for what we didn’t know as it was happening”. I agree with her assertion because everyone does make wrong choices at times and should remember the most important thing is, you must forgive yourself before you can identify what else is needed to be forgiven. Whether it is an unfaithful partner, a past decision or a mistake which had lead you to failure and forgiveness is what we must acquire to live a happier life.
This book explains all there is to know about the subject of forgiveness. It meticulously explains what forgiveness is, why it can be challenging, the psychological and spiritual benefits to forgiveness, how to forgive, and gives many examples of true forgiveness. The authors express in detail what true forgiveness looks like and how letting go of the pain others inflict upon you can provide a chance at renewing the relationship and healing. The book explains how unforgiveness can spin you into a traumatic cycle of hatred and bitterness and how to break the cycle, even in the most difficult of situations. McCullough, Sandage, and Worthington’s To Forgive is Human: How to Put Your Past in the Past was published in 1997 (InterVarsity Press [Downers
And ever, after such an outpouring, oh, what a relief have I witnessed in those sinful
“That night I lay in bed and thought about dying and going to be with my mother in paradise. I would meet her saying, “Mother, forgive. Please forgive,” and she would kiss my skin till it grew chapped and tell me I was not to blame.”
Putting into words how that event affected me is probably the most distressing thing I have ever had to do. But the only way to describe it would be a splintering collapse of my conscience. I lost faith in justice or any idea of fairness. Because just one day had ripped apart a family, killed a woman who had so much more to give and taken away my mentor.
Today, we take this parable very lightly, as we have been brought up in a culture that forgives people’s faults easily. Most people think, “Yeah, I forgive everyone who harms me.” However, if you think about it, this just isn’t true, as everyone has a couple of people they hold a grudge against, and this parable is telling us to stop holding that grudge. Forgiving is a huge part of Christian teaching and should not be taken lightly.
There are those of who will never forgive ourselves for the mistakes we have done, but some of us find our own self-forgiveness in our different ways. We may seek therapy, play musical instruments, or drive for hours at a time. Just to find a way to release the burden we have caged up inside of us. Brent Bishop though was given a task and from that task he was given he found the self-forgiveness we all strive to achieve.
Burgess, Olivia. "Forgiveness Is a Choice: A Step-by-Step Process for Resolving Anger and Restoring Hope, And: Total Forgiveness, And: Radical Forgiveness." Project MUSE. Johns Hopkins UP, 2010. Web. 19 Apr. 2014. .
Forgiveness has set me free. My moments of the perpetual journey of repeated practice and willingness to forgive has
Forgiveness is the act of releasing an offender of any wrong or hurt they may have caused you whether they deserve it or not. It is a decision to let go of resentment or vengeance toward a person or group of people. When we choose to forgive, we’re wiping the slate clean, cancelling a debt, or as I love to say, “Letting it go.” In the Bible, the Greek word for forgiveness literally means to “let it go.” This concept, “forgiveness,” is easier said than done. Majority of people find it very difficult to let go of offenses and hurts caused by others. I really do believe that most people desire to let it go, but we lack the knowledge of how to do it. As believers, we are instructed by God maintain an attitude of forgiveness.
The substance of forgiveness is known to be an important thing and concept in the teaching of Jesus. In the Bible, Jesus has made it clear that unforgiveness is known to be a serious sin nurtured in the heart. As per Jesus Christ, it is said that the person needs to be forgiven even if a serious problem is caused due to him. If not, even we would not be forgiven from God. As per Jesus, if you forgive the sin done by the people, your heavenly will also forgive you if you have committed any sin. We would always want the heavenly father to forgive us for whatever wrong things or the mistakes that we do. In fact, we always think that it is the duty of God to forgive us. However, we never consider that the degree of offence we have done. We always think that he is the God and it is his prime duty to forgive us no matter what we do. But if somebody does the same thing to us, we always feel that it is not important to forgive them we think that we should not let them go just by forgiving them. Hence, the most important thing that needs to be considered here by us is that we should learn to forgive people (...
A strong Christian lesson on the true nature of forgiveness can be found in Christ’s Sermon on the Mount: