Time to Forgive...and to be Forgiven

Reading: 2 Corinthians 5:17-19

We're in for a good test of our mettle this week, folks. On Tuesday we'll be having our national, regional, and local elections. To say it's been a dirty bunch of campaigning has been an understatement.

Now it's time to forgive...and to be forgiven.

"If anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation; the old is gone and the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation" (2 Corinthians 5:17-19).

I've been reading an excellent book this week, Praying Like Jesus, by James Mulholland. Mr. Mulholland's book goes through each stage of The Lord's Prayer and puts it into simple, yet thought-provoking words.This morning I was reading a section on forgiveness and it immediately had me thinking about the upcoming election on Tuesday. Hopefully, not too much damage has been done with our words and with our deeds; hopefully, the clean-up will be manageable. One segment in the book tells of when President Lincoln was in the midst of the end of the horrible Civil War. All those round him were demanding retribution from the South--the punishment should be severe, they told him. They were the enemy. Lincoln reminded them that there was a much more effective way to destroy one's enemies. He stated, "Do I not destroy my enemy when I make him my friend?"

Words to savor, digest, and ponder...words of wisdom.

As Mr. Mulholland states in this chapter of his book, we need to remind ourselves that all the self-righteous indignation we can muster is one thing...ridiculous. Pointless. 

Why, we ask? We've been wronged; we've been hurt; we've suffered at the words and deeds of others.

Because, simply, we've all been forgiven...over and over and over again. Every day--hour by hour. God forgives. God loves unconditionally. And God is our model for living. That's all we need to remember. 

So, as the elections approach, let's keep this in the backs of our minds...or in the fronts. Harsh words do no good whatsoever; harsh deeds make the darkness all the darker. And we are truly children of the light.

Peace be with you.