“Be kind and compassionate – forgiving each other (Eph 4:32NIV)

A counsellor writes, “We have all been wounded. Who wounds us? Those we love and those who love us. When we feel rejected, abandoned, abused, manipulated or violated, it’s usually by people close to us; our parents, our friends, our marriage partners, our children, our teachers, our pastors. This is what makes forgiveness difficult. It’s our hearts that are wounded. We cry out. “You, who I expected to be there for me, have failed me. How can I ever forgive you for that? Though forgiveness may seem impossible, the God who lives within us will give us the grace to go beyond our wounded selves and say in the name of Christ, I forgive you”. But remember, there are two sides to forgiveness, giving and receiving. Although at first sight, giving seems harder, often we are not able to offer forgiveness because we haven’t fully received it ourselves. Only as people who have tasted the joy of forgiveness can we find the inner motivation to give it. Why is receiving forgiveness so difficult? Because its hard to acknowledge that without your forgiveness I’m still affected by what happened between us. I need you to help set me free and make me whole again. That requires not only a confession that we’ve been hurt, but also the humility to admit our dependence on the very one who hurt us. Yet only when we’re able to receive forgiveness, can we truly extend it to others. (TWFT)

PRAYER LINE: I once was an outcast stranger on earth, A sinner by choice and an alien by birth; But I’ve been adopted, my name’s written down – An heir to a mansion, a robe, and a crown – Buell.

 

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We honour God’s name when are call Him our Father and live like His children.