Forgiving enemies is just plain hard. There’s no forgiveness on/off switch in our hearts. But lately I’ve been wondering if forgiveness is a lot like love. You know: When you give it away, it multiplies and comes back to you.
Sometimes it seems as if we Americans are more concerned with punishment than peace, more concerned with revenge rather than reconciliation. We find it easier to fight than to forgive. No wonder some of us find it difficult to accept God’s extravagant gift of love. And even when we are receptive to God’s mercy and forgiveness for ourselves, we may still be reluctant to offer mercy and forgiveness to others. Perhaps we simply dread being hurt again and use our grudges to help keep ourselves safe. But at the end of the day, ministry involves risk.
Forgiveness is not an event. It’s a lifestyle. God doesn’t expect us to forgive perfectly every time. But God is encouraging us to live our lives with forgiveness as our North Star. In doing so, we help honor God and help heal the body of Christ.
This message is excerpted from “Love my enemies, too?!” by Angela Khabeb in the July/August 2019 Gather magazine.
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