Thought of the Day !!

If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.  But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins. – Matthew 6:14-15 (NLT)

This may seem awfully extreme.  What if there is someone who’s done something so terrible to me that I just cannot forgive him or her?  The answer to this is quite frankly, to forgive some people is impossible, at least in our own power.  But Scripture tells us that everything is possible with God.  The one who created the world and you in it, can empower you to do anything He so desires, including forgive.  You must ask for His help and patiently wait for Him to work through you. 

Forgiveness is not approving or excusing or even pardoning what someone has done.  It’s not placing ourselves at the mercy of someone who will simply use that forgiveness to continually mistreat us.  It also does not eliminate times when tough love is necessary.

What forgiveness does is this.  It chooses not to keep a record of the wrongs done to one's self. Forgiveness is an inner condition where we rid ourselves of bitterness instead of holding on to it and allowing it to pull us down.  Also, people can be forgiven, and at the same time have to endure the consequences of their behavior.  For example, if someone does something to you that is illegal, forgiving them does not mean that they should not have to submit to the laws of the land. 

The person hurt most when we don’t forgive is ourselves.  We’re the ones who carry around the stress.  So giving it all to God and allowing Him to help us forgive is not only the best thing for our souls, it’s the best thing for our lives here on earth.

In the love of Christ,

greg