From Your Heart(Society of St. Andrew) Read: Matthew 18:34-35 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. 35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.” Some time ago, someone hurt me very badly, leaving deep emotional scars that took a long time to heal. While I found it relatively simple to forgive this person in my head, my heart lagged far behind. I found myself convicted by these words of Christ, a command to forgive “from your heart,” something particularly challenging to me in this instance. After much prayer and reflection, conversation with others, and help from the Holy Spirit, my heart caught up with my brain, and I was able to forgive fully, with both my head and my heart. This experience has allowed me to forgive more freely, more fully, and even joyfully! A song by Matthew West, titled Forgiveness, has proven powerful for me. In it, West sings, “Forgiveness, it’ll clear the bitterness away; it can even set a prisoner free. There is no end to what its power can do.” How very true! There is no end to what the power of forgiveness can do. This Lenten season, I challenge you to forgive from your heart as well as your head, so that true reconciliation, with Christ and with your neighbor, can begin. Prayer: Gracious Lord, help us to remember you by forgiving others as fully as you forgive each of us. Amen. ~Charlie Stribula Nokesville, VA
Posted on: Tue, 25 Mar 2014 12:15:58 +0000
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