Words to Treasure
Forgive other people when they sin against you. If you do, your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you.
Matthew 6:14
Martin looked at his black eye in the mirror. He looked like a onesided raccoon. Billy sat on the bed looking miserable.
“I am so sorry,” Billy said “One minute I was boarding the slope listening to tunes and the next minute you were right in front of me. Wham! You went down. You slid forever. I posted the video, and it already has a ton of hits. It was awesome.” Martin turned and looked at his friend with his one good eye.
Billy sheepishly shrugged. “Except for the whole eye thing. Which, by the way, looks cool. Really tough.” Billy paused. “Sorry.”
Martin sat down on the bed and studied his friend. “I know. I forgive you.”
“Really?” Billy looked relieved.
“Sure. Bro, you’re my best friend.”
Dwelling on past hurts isn’t good for you. It keeps all those bad feelings boiling up over and over again. It stops you from healing your hurt feelings. Forgiveness makes everything feel better. When somebody sincerely asks for your forgiveness, ask God to fill your heart with forgiveness and say yes.
People in Bible Times
Peter asked Jesus, “Lord, how many times should I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me?” Seven times seemed like a pretty fair amount to Peter. But Jesus had a much bigger number in mind — 77 times. To put it another way: forgiveness is an all-the-time thing, not a sometime thing. (See Matthew 18:21 – 22.)