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“But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”
Matthew 6;15
If we refuse to forgive others, how can we expect God to forgive us, extend His mercy and grace, time and again for the things we do and don’t do? For in the prayer that Jesus gave us, ‘The Our Father’ found in Matthew 6, we ask God to “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive our trespassers.” When we understand that we receive from God the mercy we give other people, everything changes. Understanding that truth actually brings forgiveness front and center in our daily lives. Have you offended others? Have you made mistakes that hurt others? Of course you have! Have you ever had the need to ask someone for forgiveness and mercy? Certainly! We all have. However, providing mercy for ourselves, and sharing it with others who are hard to forgive, is just a prayer away…It’s true!
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”
Luke 6:37
Oftentimes, God offers us grace and mercy in ways that we really don’t deserve. Certainly, we all ‘go there’ at times, letting ourselves become complacent, haughty, arrogant, angry, dishonest, envious, stubborn, careless, and, yes, even selfish—all things that can set us apart from others—and especially God. These things can actually harm us, and distract and derail us from pursuing our relationship with God Jesus.
We all Fall Short Sometimes
Even while attempting to live a ‘good Christian life’ with Jesus at the helm, we often falter, fall, and lose our way. And we shouldn’t be surprised at ourselves. These things just validate the need we have to ask Jesus for help. For we are all flawed human beings. The sooner we understand that we need to stop expecting perfection from ourselves and others, the sooner we can move forward and ask God for forgiveness for ourselves and offer it to others. Perfection is nothing but a trap, a manifestation of pride in ourselves. We need to learn to laugh a little more often at our own imperfections, and humbly ask God for His help. For God will always step in to help those who seek Him, and ask for His holy intercession—those who pray for His divine mercy and grace. Even when He seems to not be listening to our prayerful pleas, he’s actually working all things out for good for those who love him with grace and mercy. (Romans 8:28)
Forgiveness begets forgiveness
We need to learn to live our best life and pray heartfelt prayers for those who have hurt us, those who we do not love others as we should, for God’s mercy. That includes ourselves. And who isn’t in need of God’s mercy & grace? We need to remember that our imperfections and failings—and those of others–can and will be washed away by the Love, grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. We just need to pray and ask God for it!
Sometimes we need God’s help to forgive, though forgiveness is a very important part of living a Christian life. Sometimes it’s really really hard to forgive someone who has hurt you. Since it may be difficult for us to forgive others at times, there may be times when we have to ask God to help us forgive someone who has hurt us. And it’s OK! It can be what I call a ‘God job’—something seemingly impossible that can only happen with God’s help.
But the truth is that there is no sin that cannot be forgiven by God. In a way, when we refuse to forgive, we are judging others and condemning them. We keep them—and ourselves– in a sort of bondage, preventing us from loving the other person as fully as we should. However, no one experiences the hurt of un-forgiveness more than the person who refuses to forgive. So we must find a way to forgive others… But how?
When we need to forgive others, and when we make mistakes, and we all do, we need to pray and ask God for forgiveness. When we refuse to forgive others, it negatively affects our relationship with God. So the bottom line is this:
If we want God to forgive us, we need to find a way to forgive others.
If there is someone you need to forgive today, but are having trouble doing so, I suggest you pray today, and ask God for His help. Don’t wait! Say ‘The Our Father’ for them, or if you prefer, just say a simple 1 second prayer. Then watch and see your perspective about them change quickly, as you become more and more able to move toward forgiveness. If you can pray for those you need to forgive, you are half way there!
‘Jesus, please help me to love ______Mary_________as you love me.’
‘Please help me forgive ___Joannie.’____
‘Dear Lord, please be with me and help me grow in forgiveness with _Johnny.’
Dear Father God, please heal my relationship with ____Henry.____
Through your heartfelt prayers, God will show you the way to be free of un-forgiveness, and you will experience great personal freedom as you move into a state of forgiveness. Because in the end, it’s really all about God’s Love. Jesus gave us just 2 new commandments: Love God with all your heart & love one another. Perhaps today is the day for you to forgive that certain person who hurt you. For scripture tells us:
Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”
Luke 6:37
© Copyright 2022 | Adele M. Gill
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