Forgiveness

We've relegated the letter F to the trash heap of society. When we hear "the f-word" we think of a very offensive word that society has manufactured. But God has another f-word—the real f-word—that we all need to think about: forgiveness.

There are going to be times in life when people will hurt us so badly that we don't even want to think about forgiving them. But when we choose not to forgive, we are choosing to be attached to anger, resentment, and hurt that will only weigh us down.

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times." Matthew 18:21-22 A lot of people read a verse like the one above and think, "I'm not going to let anybody get away with hurting me 77 times!" But Jesus was not being literal in his math. He was simply telling Peter how ridiculous to count how many times he forgave people. Forgiveness is designed to be immeasurable.

Christ wants us to experience the most out of life. And the person who is experiencing the most out of life doesn't allow themselves to be weighed down by the junk and funk of unforgiveness. Don't hold yourself back from experiencing life just because someone hurt you. Instead, ask God to help you experience the power of forgiveness.