Sacred Practice: Forgiveness

Forgiveness.

It came up in Bible study this morning. 
And it reminded me it’s time for a forgiveness cleanse.

Life is messy.
Filled with people
who, at their best,
live in harmony,
seeking to build up,
and at their worst
buy into the lie
that tearing down,
in word or action 
or some distorted view 
of life,
brings power
and superiority. 

But looking at Jesus, 
I cannot find reason
to hold grudges.
I cannot find an excuse
to live in the tearing down
or the harboring resentment and ill wishes
or the seeking revenge. 

I only ever see Him forgive.

“Father, forgive them…”

It’s a personal challenge to join my voice to His by saying these words. 

It’s a necessary faith practice to say, “I forgive.” 

Even when I don’t want to. 
Even when I cannot. 
Even when “they don’t deserve it.”

I am the “them” in Jesus’ words, yet He forgives me. 
Completely. Willingly. Always.

It is good to practice forgiving others 
in the quiet of my own relationship with God.

“for they know not what they do.”

I have hurt, and I have harmed, both intentionally and unknowingly. 
Yet He always forgives me.

So it is good for me to get quiet with Jesus, to ask Him to bring to mind those I’m harboring resentment toward, those who hurt my feelings or wounded me or glanced over me in some way, whether they recognized it or not.

I hold grudges I don’t even recognize in my mind and heart. 
But when I enter this intentional space, these few short moments of asking God to bring to mind those I need to forgive, then literally saying “I forgive ____,” 
I am changed. I am softened. 
I am restored to an understanding of what it means to be forgiven.

Forgiveness is not a magical spell. 
It’s not reconciliation in harmful spaces that must be avoided. 
But it is a sacred practice 
that guides my heart and mind to a Better Way of Living.

A conscious decision to let go.
Reclaiming my emotional well-being.
Shifting from vengeance to compassion.
It is for my good. 

I seek these Good Things in life.
Often, it takes some intentional participation,
imperfect though it may be.
But when I do what He says,
when I practice forgiving,
I am internally healed,
little by little,
one small forgiveness at a time.

So today I’ll practice that forgiveness.
I'll ask Him to cleanse my soul.
I'll ask for strength to forgive others.

And I'm confident,
through His forgiveness of me,
and as I fumble my way through forgiving others,
those Good Things 
will continue 
to grow.