To Forgive or Not to Forgive

Well here it is Jan. 2011 ....... I sure hope everybody had a Merry Christmas and a wonderful & safe new years. Kathy and I spent the time with her mom and dad in Ill., up near Champagne. It turned into a working vacation for us however. As it turned out we did some work up stairs for pops to keep him busy and out of our way so we could take over the living room and remove the falling down plaster ceiling and panel the whole room with an open beam type design. It took us almost the whole 4 weeks we were there, only because I can't do/work like I use too. Anyway, for a rushed job it turned out pretty good and ma and pa in-law are happy with the final out come. Shoot, we even brought back a couple 4 legged babies, they were 2 months old on the 17th. I was looking for one, but Kathy had to get two, keep each other company you know, o-well, that's kind of how she is. Anyway, our trip north for the holidays was very trying and I came across something I wrote that helped me out of getting to stress out and I would like to share it. Who knows, maybe it will open a door for you .......

Through My Mind’s Eye
by
Bradley C. Barnett
Inspired by the Holy Spirit

To Forgive or Not to Forgive

My wife asked me recently about forgiveness and how it should work. Now I know she knows how to forgive or I would be out sleeping with the dogs at least once a week, ok, maybe twice. But how does one forgive or ask forgiveness from another?
To forgive someone, for a lot of us, is hard to do. It’s that fleshy thing that always gets in the way; the anger and vengeful thoughts that open a door for Satan to influence our thoughts, our struggling walk with Christ. Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:14+15 (14) For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: (15) But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Do we not want our heavenly Father to forgive our trespasses? We are required, as written from the words of Jesus, to forgive one another. But because of one circumstance or another sometimes it’s so very hard to do. Among anger, there could also be fear of one form or another. Fear of the forgiveness or being forgiven not being accepted, fear of personal contact due to past history, etc... Whatever the reason/fear might be,
Before I was born again, it was hard for me to forgive and to ask forgiveness. Now, as I study Gods word on forgiving and forgiveness it is becoming easier for me to understand why. However, there are people that I probably will never see again and some that I would rather not ever see again, still, I have asked our Father God to forgive me and also them for our transgressions against each other.
Is that appropriate, to ask God’s forgiveness without the person knowing? I think so, I hope so. In Mark 11:25+26, Jesus says (25) And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have aught (anything; any part or item) against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. (26) But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.
I am not a scholar of the Bible but I do try my best, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to understand the teachings of God’s word. Those last two verses, Mark 11:25+26, tell me to forgive, no matter what. Not forgiving someone is like making a judgment against them and that is not a good thing for us to do either. Look at Luke 6:37+38 (37) Judge not and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven: (38) Give, and it shall be given unto you: Good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom, for with the same measure that ye mete (to allot or distribute by or as by) withal it shall be measured to you again.
We all have to make judgments and we all judge one another to some degree. It’s how we judge that we need to be careful of, and always forgive. Matthew 18:21+22 tells us the best way to follow; (21) Then came Peter to Him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times? (22) Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, until seven times: But, until seventy times seven. Now that’s only 490 times, and if I’m not mistaken, to me anyway, that was Jesus’ way of saying, just do it and don’t worry about counting.
Think of this; Even as Jesus hung there on the cross, held by three large spikes, he asked his and our Father God to forgive those that put him there, for they knew not what they did, Luke 23:34.
It’s not easy for us to follow in the exact steps of Jesus, but the act of asking forgiveness, for someone else or for ourselves and forgiving someone else, in a sincere loving prayer to God in Jesus’ name, would be a step in the right direction.
Dear Father God, please forgive me of my transgressive thoughts and behavior towards others and please forgive others for the same against me. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen

03 Nov. 2010