Tag Archives: Find freedom in forgiveness

Beyond revenge

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Mandy Patinkin may be remembered for many roles in his Hollywood career, but probably none more so than his portrayal of the Spanish swordsman, Inigo Montoya in the film classic The Princess Bride. Montoya had dedicated his entire life to the revenge of his father, killed years ago by the evil Count Rugen. The line most remembered by fans is, “Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.” But Patinkin shares his favorite line which comes at the end of the film. Having completed his quest of killing the Count, Inigo remarks, “I have been in the revenge business for so long, now that it’s over, I don’t know what to do with the rest of my life.”

Can you associate with that? Is there a compelling sense of bitterness, hatred, revenge, or other negative emotion that tears your life apart? Something you have determined to carry to your grave? A person you have refused to forgive? Or maybe a negative behavior you know is not right, one that keeps you from experiencing God’s best for you, but you keep falling back into it? If so, I encourage you to give it up. Completely. Surrender it all to God and reconcile with others. Feel the weight of this terrible burden slip off your shoulders. Feel the renewal of your heart. Experience what it is like to take a full breath and feel the refreshment and freedom that comes only from forgiveness and turning to God. Turn from the emptiness of what is eating you up and taste the goodness of God, being filled with his grace.

Do What Jesus Said: Forgive each other

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Jesus said, “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Matthew 6:14-15

We all know we are commanded to forgive but do you know it is for your own good? Someone once said, “Not forgiving others is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.” Holding back on forgiveness is not just about the other person. Mostly it is about the offended one. Forgiving others keeps bitterness, resentment and anger from poisoning our minds and hearts. I used to be one of those people chained by anger and bitterness. I’ve known some people who would carry this burden for decades, some even carried it to their graves.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. It’s not about waiting until the other person asks to be forgiven or deserves to be forgiven. NONE of us will ever be worthy of the forgiveness God offered us. (“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”) Forgiveness is about extending the love of God to others. But it is also about protecting our heart.

I wonder if sometimes we are needlessly offended. For example, someone who normally is not uncaring is having a bad day (or month or year!). And today they say or do something that offends you. If we’re going to take offense we’re going to have to deal with the forgiveness issue. Maybe we just need to dial our sensitivity shield down a few notches. The same principle could be applied to people who are always in a bad mood, always inconsiderate and offensive. Couldn’t we just write these comments off and let our shield of faith ward off those angry darts? We probably won’t be able to change this person, but we don’t have to let their attacks land on us. Better to just let them roll off us.

I don’t normally follow much news about the pope, but one recent article* caught my eye. A shipwreck of African migrants off the coast of a small Mediterranean island was hardly noticed by the world but it grabbed the attention of Pope Francis. Casting a memorial wreath into the waters in honor of those who died, the pope made a poignant comment that should reach the heart of each of us: “We have fallen into a globalization of indifference.” And then he prayed for forgiveness for the world leaders who have ignored the plight of those who died seeking freedom. Later he tweeted: “We pray for a heart which will embrace immigrants. God will judge us upon how we have treated the most needy,” reflecting Jesus’ call in Matthew 25. (See yesterday’s post.)

As we think about forgiving others, let’s remember we also need to ask forgiveness for our indifference to others.

Original CNN article about the pope may be found at: http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/07/14/is-pope-francis-the-catholic-princess-diana/