FROM THE HEART
“Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto
him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst
me: Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I
had pity on thee? And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors,
till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly
Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his
brother their trespasses.”
Matthew 19: 32 – 35
King James Version
I spent many years hating my parents because I thought they had mistreated me. I
was very disobedient, sarcastic, and I always wanted my own way. I would give
both my arms and legs if I could see them right now and ask them to forgive me
for causing them so much pain. I want to tell them that I love them, but it’s
too late now.
I don’t know what kind of childhood you had, but this one thing I know, no
matter what your parents did to hurt you, even if they did it on purpose,
forgive them. Our parents are human just like we are and they make mistakes just
like we do. We’re not perfect, yet we expect our parents to be perfect. They may
have also had an unhappy childhood where they didn’t feel loved.
Jesus said that if we don’t forgive from our hearts, if we don’t have compassion
for people who hurt us, His heavenly Father won’t have compassion on us. How
dare we go to God and ask Him to forgive us and have mercy on us when we harden
our hearts repeatedly and refuse to forgive our families, loved ones and
friends. How that must break the heart of Jesus! If you are harboring a grudge
in your heart against someone, let it go! Don’t keep breaking the heart of our
precious Saviour. Let’s forgive from our hearts as Jesus forgave from His heart.
Joanne Lowe
September 28, 2006
