And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you – Ephesians 4:32
“So, what did you think of the show?” Grammy asked her grandson. “I think you believe that watching a wrongly imprisoned man who harbors no resentment after his release will make me forgive Jonathan,” Junior responded. “And has it worked?” “Grammy, why should I? His lie prevented me from pitching in the fourth inning during the last game. It made me look bad.” “Junior, accepting Jonathan’s apology won’t reverse what was done, but it will keep you from carrying anger. He didn’t steal your thunder. No one can do that. Just make sure he doesn’t take anything else worth keeping,” Grammy advised.
One of the greatest challenges as a Christian is obeying the teachings of forgiveness, which assures reciprocity from God. A leading barrier is the belief that extending forgiveness exonerates the offender of wrongdoing, and therefore, refusing to grant it maintains a debt of punishment. However, holding a grudge will not reverse what happened; the offense is only replayed, mentally, until it is released to God through forgiveness. Doing so begins the healing journey without the weight of resentment and bitterness.
Metaphorically speaking, I’ve found forgiveness to be one of many courses in the college of life. And like many of those harder subjects, it requires patience and persistence to achieve a satisfactory grade. Thankfully, the Professor is well-equipped in the matter and will lead His student to become an alumnus.