My husband is the band leader for the contemporary service at our church. At the beginning of each week, we read the following Sunday's bible lessons and our Pastor's worship notes in an effort to select songs that will help tie the whole service together.
Some weeks are easier than others. This was not one of those weeks.
Not because the lessons were hard to understand or the Pastor's notes were ambiguous..... quite the contrary.
For me, the readings took on a more personal side.....
Matthew 18:32-35
Hmmmm..... Forgiveness.... not a strong attribute for me... in fact I have a tendency to hold on... hold on with all my might. All the wrongs in my life.
My. Entire. Life.
I am the wicked servant.
We have been told over and over that it is necessary to forgive. Many articles... many, many, many therapists, doctors and counselors have all said that forgiveness helps the forgiver....
I wholeheartedly agree with those statements... it all makes sense.
However, I believe I hold on that lovely little gift...
Why?
Because it is for me.
What?
I am a servant. I serve. So to do something for myself does not make any sense in my little brain. If I hold onto that forgiveness... it is not hurting anyone but me.
The word "SERVANT" jumped out at me in those verses. It is giving me a different perspective.
To be a better servant..... is to forgive. So I am not doing it for myself. I need to see that it is being done for others.
If I forgive everyone that has, whether intentional or not, hurt me..... I will be a better servant.
So, how does it help others?
It seems that if forgiveness is given.... especially if it is accepted by the one giving it...... hmmmmm......
If forgiveness is accepted by the one giving it, then the giver (servant) sees the person to be forgiven (fellow servant) in a new light. Not as the one who hurt them, but as someone who needs help, needs to be served. And someone who is trying to serve just as we are!
Sooooooo....... if I see the person who is being forgiven, not as a mean, selfish person, who has hurt me, but as someone who needs help and as a fellow servant...... I will treat them differently. I will not hold on to that hurt with all my might. I will not want to seek justice or righteousness.... I will not treat them as an enemy. I will not wallow in it. (Yes, that is a tough one to swallow.)
Instead of being cold, distant, and even I will dare to say.... mean to them, I will serve them. Love them.
To give them God's love.
It is time.....
Time to forgive. Time to release the wickedness.
Time to just be a servant.
Some weeks are easier than others. This was not one of those weeks.
Not because the lessons were hard to understand or the Pastor's notes were ambiguous..... quite the contrary.
For me, the readings took on a more personal side.....
Matthew 18:32-35
32 “Then
the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I
canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
Hmmmm..... Forgiveness.... not a strong attribute for me... in fact I have a tendency to hold on... hold on with all my might. All the wrongs in my life.
My. Entire. Life.
I am the wicked servant.
We have been told over and over that it is necessary to forgive. Many articles... many, many, many therapists, doctors and counselors have all said that forgiveness helps the forgiver....
I wholeheartedly agree with those statements... it all makes sense.
However, I believe I hold on that lovely little gift...
Why?
Because it is for me.
What?
I am a servant. I serve. So to do something for myself does not make any sense in my little brain. If I hold onto that forgiveness... it is not hurting anyone but me.
The word "SERVANT" jumped out at me in those verses. It is giving me a different perspective.
To be a better servant..... is to forgive. So I am not doing it for myself. I need to see that it is being done for others.
If I forgive everyone that has, whether intentional or not, hurt me..... I will be a better servant.
So, how does it help others?
It seems that if forgiveness is given.... especially if it is accepted by the one giving it...... hmmmmm......
If forgiveness is accepted by the one giving it, then the giver (servant) sees the person to be forgiven (fellow servant) in a new light. Not as the one who hurt them, but as someone who needs help, needs to be served. And someone who is trying to serve just as we are!
Sooooooo....... if I see the person who is being forgiven, not as a mean, selfish person, who has hurt me, but as someone who needs help and as a fellow servant...... I will treat them differently. I will not hold on to that hurt with all my might. I will not want to seek justice or righteousness.... I will not treat them as an enemy. I will not wallow in it. (Yes, that is a tough one to swallow.)
Instead of being cold, distant, and even I will dare to say.... mean to them, I will serve them. Love them.
To give them God's love.
It is time.....
Time to forgive. Time to release the wickedness.
