Lenten-Meditations-2015-w

Forgiveness
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Instructions on Forgiveness
READ: Matthew 6:1-18
KEY VERSE: “But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your
Father forgive your trespasses” -Matthew 6:15 (KJV)
A woman I met one Saturday at a Washington battered women’s shelter
asked me how to forgive people who hurt you. She shared that she provides
free legal services for survivors of domestic violence and couldn’t understand
how you can forgive those who have harmed you. Her inability to forgive had
created problems at work and church, with family and friends. In fact, she
began to question the survivors who said they had forgiven their batterer.
I told her that God provides instructions on forgiveness in the Bible. While I
spoke, tears began rolling down her cheeks.
Jesus gave His disciples a model for praying that included the notion of
forgiveness. In prayer there is a connection between what God does and
what we do. We can’t receive forgiveness from God, for instance, without also
forgiving others. If we refuse to do our part, we are cut off from God’s part.
–Minister Sylvia Dayton-Jones
LOOKING WITHIN: Who do I need to forgive? What steps do I need to take to
start the process?
O Lord, please forgive me of my sins, as I forgive those who have sinned
against me. Give me, O Lord, a loving, reconciling heart today. In this,
help me to follow the supreme example of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ. Amen.
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