Forgive and Forget

(Mat 18:23 NIV) “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.

(Mat 18:24 NIV) As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him.

(Mat 18:25 NIV) Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

(Mat 18:26 NIV) The servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’

(Mat 18:27 NIV) The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

(Mat 18:28 NIV) But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.

(Mat 18:29 NIV) “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’

(Mat 18:30 NIV) “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt.

(Mat 18:31 NIV) When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.

(Mat 18:32 NIV) “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.

(Mat 18:33 NIV) Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’

(Mat 18:34 NIV) In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

(Mat 18:35 NIV) “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”

Sitting at my computer, looking out the window I see a small part of Gods’ plan. Thinking about forgiveness was something that I had a hard time with. I had been hurt very badly in the past and to be honest I didn’t want to let go of the hurt. Revenge was a big part of my life for the longest time. I would sit for hours thinking of different ways to get back at those that hurt me. The one thing that always brought me back to forgiveness was my wife telling me to forget and let it go. Forgiveness isn’t something that you just have, you must be taught it and then practice it. I got a lot of practice with my own children. LOL Some times with children forgiving becomes a daily act. What we’re not told is that along with forgiving we have to forget. What good is forgiving someone if you keep bringing up why you forgave them. It’s like you really never forgave them in the first place. Today I practice both forgiving and forgetting. It has made my life so much simpler. Today I sit back and let God lead. As I once heard it said, “When I first came to believe God was in the passengers seat. After I learned, I moved over and now God drives.” God has way more to show me then I ever had to show Him. So if you are having trouble struggling with forgiveness, keep reading and rereading the verses above and maybe one day they’ll make Perfect sense to you too.

(Mat 18:21 NIV) 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?”

(Mat 18:22 NIV) Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”

In His Amazing Love,
Richard

SOURCE: www.inspirationalarchive.com