'm reading this book on forgiveness right now. About truly, whole hearted forgiving someone for things they have done. Lets be honest here... that's TOUGH STUFF! I have been thinking a lot about this lately, and one day when I was asking my sons forgiveness for how I reacted, his simple response was " It's OK, I know it was an accident!" He's 3 1/2 so I don't really know if he fully understands what accident means, but his forgiveness is whole. There is no harboring resentment or anger about what I have done. I have a clean slate. This is exactly what Christ provides for us. Not what we deserve, because none of us DESERVE forgiveness, but what he gives us anyway. What happens between childhood and adulthood that makes this kind of forgiveness SO HARD? Somewhere along the line our hearts are hardened and we feel " justified" and resentful and we've lost trust.
Man, I'm going to be honest. I would pay good money to be able to forgive so easily. To not feel hardened and resentful. To not think about all the things that someone has done to me in the past. To be able to wipe the slate clean and start fresh, but honestly it is A LOT of work. Getting past the pride, because that is what it is, to be able to forgive someone whole hearted is REALLY, REALLY, HARD!
Being able to forgive fully is often giving someone something that they don't deserve. Giving them something that they might never give you or have never given you. I pray that as I dwell on this more that God will be able to work more in more so I can forgive fully. " No big deal, I know it was just an accident."
