The Power and Miracle of Forgiveness

by: JESUS V.SISON, PTRP, CRFV Deputy National Director

Is there someone in your life whom you need to forgive? Is there someone in your life that you need to ask for forgiveness? What is keeping you from forgiving a person? What is keeping you from seeking forgiveness for that person? Saint Paul's modest instruction to Timothy was, "Be careful about the way you live and about what you teach. Keep doing this, and you will save yourself and the people who hear you." We are reminded to live our lives carefully by not contaminating them or carrying unnecessary weights that will devaluate who we are. Jesus Christ also instructed his disciples, including us, that we "… be on guard, so that your hearts are not weighed down and depressed with the giddiness of debauchery and the nausea of self-indulgence and the worldly worries of life, and then that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap." One of the things that we must guard our hearts from is unforgiveness.
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Conflicts and disagreements with accompanying misunderstandings and bitterness are not healthy. They carry the potential to destroy a person/s and relationships. But, if they are appropriately and constructively handled, they can be a beneficial force for uniting everyone. For this reason, Colossians 3 reminds us that "… now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. Please don't lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. Please put on your new nature and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us. Since God chose you to be the holy people He loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Accept each other's faults and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others."

Forgiveness lures numerous reactions. If we're referring to the Almighty God's forgiveness of us, it can be a comforting theme, resulting in thankfulness and peace. But if we need to seek forgiveness from someone who either offended or wronged or extend it to someone who deeply hurt us, it will be the most uncomfortable kind of forgiveness on our part. It will be a difficult and, at times, unenjoyable challenge. We might squabble with our ego, presumptions, and pride before approaching that person humbly. However, the result will be a clear conscience, making it well worth the effort.
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Forgiveness is our choice and personal decision to receive God's grace to let go of the bruised feelings and pained areas of our lives due to offenses committed against us. It is coupled with acts of mercy and love toward the offender. "Certainly, forgiveness does not come spontaneously or naturally to people. Forgiving from the heart can sometimes be heroic. Thanks to the healing power of love, even the most wounded heart can experience a liberating encounter with forgiveness. It rests, above all, on the adoption of a style of human coexistence marked by mutual acceptance and a capacity to forgive from the heart. We all need to be forgiven by others, so we must all be ready to forgive. Asking and granting forgiveness is something profoundly worthy of every one of us." (Pope John Paul II (May 18, 1920- April 2, 2005). Pope John Paul II emphasized that forgiveness is restoring one's freedom. It is the key held in our hand from our prison cell. It should never be viewed as an act of weakness. We would always express our humanity through forgiveness.

In his book, which was initially published in 1976 by Victor Books, Leslie Flynn tells of two unmarried sisters who lived together. Still, because of an unresolved disagreement over an insignificant issue, they stopped speaking to each other (talk about one of the inescapable results of refusing to forgive). Since they were either unable or unwilling to move out of their tiny house, they continued to use the same rooms, eat at the same table, use the same appliances, and sleep in the same room - all separately - without uttering one word. A chalk line divided the sleeping area into halves, separating doorways, and the fireplace. Each would come and go, cook, and eat, sew, and read without ever stepping into her sister's territory. Through the black of night, each could hear the deep breathing of the other, but because both were unwilling to take the first step toward forgiving and releasing whatever the offense, they coexisted for years in grinding silence. We don't want this to happen in our homes or workplaces. Refusing to forgive, neglecting to resolve conflicts, and failing to address issues to hold others accountable lead to heartbreaks. These things build monuments of malice, hostility, and unkindness. How many families, workers, and organizations hold on to memories of resentment and bitterness? How many lives were destroyed because of unforgiveness? Whether our dispute is personal, office, or public, we reveal our value and who we are. Either we possess a God-led life with a humble and forgiving heart as to how we respond to people who have offended us or simply a person of vanity.
We always have a choice. Will we choose to cling to the things that have hurt us until we've erected monuments of malice, hostility, and unkindness that divide our once-harmonious relationships, or will we create lasting legacies by exercising the power of forgiveness? Will we allow offenses, hurts, and unforgiveness to dictate our future and define who we are?

Remember, none of us can forgive by our power. In Alexander Pope's essay, he mentioned, "To err is human, to forgive divine." It will not be by our might nor strength but by the Spirit of the Lord that we can forgive. The Lord promised us His divine power to forgive. Thus, forgiveness is our decision to accept God's enabling grace to forgive. By forgiving, we unshackle people and ourselves from negative emotions and darkness that lurks in our hearts or hunts us every moment. We powerfully set ourselves free from hurting our very own life. Lewis Smedes once said, "Forgiving is the only way to be fair to yourself. Would it be fair to you that the person who hurt you once goes on hurting you for the rest of your life? When you refuse to forgive, you are giving the person who battered you once the privilege of hurting you all over again—in your memory."

When Saint Peter asked Jesus Christ, "' Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?' Jesus said to him, 'I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.' Jesus often told people, "Your sins are forgiven." Forgiveness is powerful.

Right now, accept God's supernatural grace to forgive all who have sinned against you in any way. Say: "In the Name of Jesus Christ and by God's grace, I decide to forgive ___ for ___." Fill in the blanks and repeat this statement until you have forgiven everyone who has offended you. Then, thank Jesus forever for the miracle of forgiveness. As we forgive those who trespassed against us, God also has forgiven us.