Having a Spirit of forgiveness

 

Luke 7:47-50

By Rev. Davis M. Byars, Jr.

 

Therefore, I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much.  But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.  “Then He said to her, your sins are forgiven.”  And those who sat at the table with Him began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

Then He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you.  Go in peace.”

The art of forgiveness begins when you forgive someone.

It is having a humble spirit and being done with pride and self-pity.  It is taking a step toward the practice of forgiveness.  Hate is death, forgiveness is life.

If the Lord can forgive us of our sins, why do we have such a difficult time of forgiving others when we perceive them to have done us wrong?  Getting rid of our heart aches and pains begins with us.  We must learn to free ourselves of all the negative baggage we carry around each and every day with our unforgiving spirit.

Forgiveness works the miracle of change.  When Lincoln was asked why he did not destroy his enemies, he replied:  “If I make my enemies my friends, don’t I then destroy them?”  When you forgive you change others and you change yourself.  You change discord to harmony.

Forgiveness should span the years.  You should first forgive yourself for the wrongs you’ve done to yourself and others, for the mistakes you’ve made.  Then you should forgive and bless all those who have wronged you during your lifetime.  Thus you release others and you release yourself.  You break the chains of regret and remorse that bind you.  You free your mind from the burdens of the past so you may walk victoriously into the future.

Forgiveness works two ways.  You must forgive to be forgiven.  “He who cannot forgive others,” wrote Edward Herbert, “breaks the bridge over which he himself must pass; for every man has the need to be forgiven.”

Forgiveness should become a habit.  When the Master was asked how often we should forgive, he answered: “Until seventy times seven.”  He who forgives to infinity will never hate.

Forgiveness should start now.  Putting off forgiving only deepens the wound.  Clinging to bitterness postpones happiness.  Life is short, time is fleeting.  Today is the day to forgive.

 

Forgiveness is the way to personal peace.  It is performing mental surgery in yourself, probing deep within to remove hurts, grudges and resentments.  It is forgetting wrongs as though they had never been.  It is flooding your mind with the powerful medicine of forgiveness that cleanses and heals.  It is discovering a serenity you’ve never known before.

Learn to live life one day at a time

 

By Rev. Davis M. Byars, Jr.

This is the day that God has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it. Let us learn to live one day at a time. Yesterday has passed and tomorrow is not promised. God has blessed you with His marvelous light of life that you have this great opportunity to make this day anything that you want it to be, what are you going to do? The choice is yours, nothing or no one is standing in your way of you achieving your desired goals. Who will you serve this day? Who will you give the praise and glory to for allowing you to be exactly where you are? For the choices you made yesterday and all the yesterdays before has led you to be right where you are today. You may or may not like where you are, but you are where you are because of the choices you made early on in your life. Now, do you have to stay where you are? Absolutely not! Today you have been given another opportunity to make a different choice.There is a story about a miner that was prospecting for goal many years ago. He had been digging in this same mine for more than twenty years, and had very little to show for all his many years of labor. One day two young college graduates came alone and offered to buy the old miner out, giving him a nice retirement for his many years of labor. The old miner decided to take the two lads up on their offer. He packed up all his personal belongings and moved on. The two lads set up camp and then they begin digging. After digging just a few feet down, they hit the mother lube and now they were super rich.

You see, the old man had to make a choice that day, to stay and continue digging or except the offer from the two lads. Was it a bad choice or a good choice? You decide.

The Bible tells us to seek the kingdom of God first and all the other riches of life will be added unto you. It also tells us not to store up our treasures here on this earth because they can easy be stolen are taken away.

You see each day you awaken, you have the choice to do right are do wrong, go left are go right, be a success are be a failure, except the ways of God are except the ways of Satan. The choice is always yours to make. What ever choice you make, you can rest assured that you will be rewarded for your choice, just as the old miner and the young lads were given their rewards while still in their earthly garments. What rewards are you seeking when you make your choice this day?

Remember that you only need to live life one day at a time. You don’t have to worry about tomorrow but rest in the assurance that He who has led you today will be even closer tomorrow.