*Matthew 18:23-35
"Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. 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. "At this the servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.' The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. "But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded. "His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.' "But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened. "Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. "This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart."
Is there anything that has made you lose your joy? Some people have such difficult problems that they have no longer smile - unexpected challenges, the loss of a loved one, financial setbacks, the betrayal of someone they loved, etc.
We have lived through all of those situations & we have lost count of the number of times we have been stabbed in the back.
Lord, never allow me to lose the blessing there is in believing in people; I apply the blood of Jesus & declare that I am healed from every hurt. I choose to see the betrayal I experienced as if it were experienced by somebody else. I resolve to continue believing in people, giving them new opportunities & praying for them.
After praying, we refused to allow anything to steal our joy - although we did lose it once.
A lack of forgiveness not only causes bitterness in us - it also hinders us from receiving divine mercy, just as Jesus taught in the parable of the 2 debtors.
To forgive means to have mercy on someone who does not deserve it.
It means renouncing our rights to condemn someone although we could legitimately do so.
We had the right to demand justice from those who had tried to murder us; the wicked servant in the parable did not invent the debt of his fellow servant, nor was he acting against the law when he sent him to prison.
However, the king handed him over to the jailers to be tortured because he did not show the same mercy he had received.
Just as God forgave our sins, although we did not deserve it, to such an extent that He sees us as if we had never sinned, we should also forgive those who harm us, even though they may not deserve our forgiveness.
We know that we have forgiven someone when we are able to see them as if they had never done anything against us.
Forgive them sincerely in prayer, remembering what forgiveness means.
It includes family, friends, high school & college classmates, co-workers & yourself.
REMEMBER:
FORGIVENESS IS THE MEDICINE THAT KEEPS HEARTS HEALTHY.
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