Inside me
Forgiveness is not saying it did not hurt. It is stopping carrying revenge as a job. Jesus says seventy times seven — stop counting. Forgiveness does not mean you have to let it happen again. And when you yourself are wrong: confess. You may start again, like the son who came home and met a father who ran.
Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Until seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I don’t tell you until seven times, but, until seventy times seven.
What it means
Forgiveness is not a thin calculator. Stop counting. Forgiveness is release, not denial of pain.
How you can live it
Name the hurt. Ask for help to release revenge. Boundaries can still stand.
“He arose, and came to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him, and was moved with compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.
What it means
While he was still a long way off, his father saw him and ran. Grace runs toward the one who turns.
How you can live it
When you have done wrong: turn around. You may be met, not only judged.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us the sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
What it means
Confession is not a speech where you get told off. You name what you did — to God, and to the person if you can — and he meets that with forgiveness and a fresh start, not with longer guilt.
How you can live it
Confess honestly. Receive forgiveness. Then do the next right thing.
A prayer
God, I need both to forgive and to be forgiven. Soften my heart, and take the shame from me. Amen.