Two in One Month
July 26, 2004
Barbara
Well, would you look at that, a second post in July. I have been doing some crocheting and staying off the computer that last few days, but I came across something in a Richard Foster devotional I wanted to share.
The devotional is “Forgiveness Without Pretending”. You know by some of my previous posts, I’ve struggled with “true forgiveness”. I was reading this devotional and it really spoke to me. I quote:
“…some think that forgiveness means a ceasing to hurt. There is the belief that if we continue to hurt, we must have failed to truly forgive. That is simply not true. Hurting is not evil. We may hurt for a long time to come. Forgiveness does not mean that we will stop hurting….many would have us believe that forgiveness means forgetting….But the truth of the matter is that we cannot forget. We remember; the difference will be that we no longer need or desire to use the memory against others. The memory remains, the vindictiveness leaves….many assume that to forgive means to pretend that the relationship is just the same as before….this is simply not the case. The relationship will never be the same again. We might as well make peace with that fact. By the grace of God it may be a hundred times better, but it will never be the same.”
Thank you Lord that you forgive and enable me to. Thank you Lord for the knowledge that even though I remember and sometimes hurt, I have forgiven.
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1.
Mark Feliciano | July 27, 2004 at 8:46 am
I love that passage to Babe. Thanks for sharing it with us.
2.
Kerri | July 27, 2004 at 10:25 am
Thanks, Barb. For the longest time, I thought that once I forgave, not only would the hurt go away but the relationship would change and the other party would change as well. It took some time for me to understand, but the changing took place in me…and at that point, that is what mattered. You make me think, girl.
love ya
3.
Jason | July 27, 2004 at 12:18 pm
That’s an awesome quote, Barb. It exposes the Christian garbage that forgiveness is some magical quality that erases the slate and makes everything go back to normal. If that were so, then why would Christ still carry the scars of his ultimate act of forgiveness? What you’ve shared is so much more healing. It reminds us that scars don’t go away. Instead, they can become “icons” for worship and gratitude as we remember God’s grace in those painful circumstances.
4.
Debbie Zahariades | August 18, 2004 at 3:39 pm
You know that passage where one disciple asks if he should forgive his brother up to 7 times? Well then Jesus says you should forgive him seventy-seven times. I think that is for the same transgression. Each time that I think about the wrong done to me and I am tempted to hate or not forgive the wrong doer…that is when I need to forgive again. It is an ongoing choice to live with forgiveness in my heart toward the one who has hurt me. Just as it would be an ongoing choice to not forgive. Day by day choose forgiveness.