When we each take responsibility for removing the blocks to the presence of love through forgiveness, what we will experience is going to be peace, joy, and happiness that is beyond our imagination.
Forgiveness is the bridge to God, love, and happiness. It is the bridge that allows us to say good-bye to guilt, blame, and shame. It teaches us that love is letting go of fear.
Forgiveness clears the air and purifies the heart and soul. It puts us in touch with all that is sacred. Through forgiveness, we connect with that which is greater than ourselves, with that which is beyond our imagination and full understanding. It allows us to be peaceful with the mystery of life. It creates the opportunity for us to do what we came here to do:
Teach Only Love, for That Is What We Are.
In closing this book, I’d like to share with you a poem I wrote in Bosnia in 1998 while Diane and I were on our way to a workshop titled “Forgiveness and Reconciliation for Religious and Spiritual Leaders.”
You may want to read this poem weekly as a way of reviewing some of the forgiveness principles in this book.
FORGIVENESS
To forgive is the prescription
For happiness.
To not forgive is the prescription
To suffer.
Is it possible
All pain
Regardless of its cause
Has some component of
Unforgiveness in it?
To hold on to vengeful thoughts
To withhold our love and compassion
Certainly must interfere
With our health
And our immune system.
Holding on to what we call justified anger
Interferes with our experiencing
The Peace of God.
To forgive
Does not mean
Agreeing with the act;
It does not mean condoning
An outrageous behavior.
Forgiveness means
No longer living in
The fearful past.
No longer scratching wounds
So they continue to bleed.
Forgiveness means
Living and loving
Completely in the present,
Without the shadows of the past.
Forgiveness means
Freedom from anger
And attack thoughts.
Forgiveness means
Letting go of all hopes
For a better past.
Forgiveness means
Not excluding
Your love from anyone.
Forgiveness means
Healing the hole in your heart
Caused by unforgiving thoughts.
Seeing the light of God
In everyone, regardless
Of their behavior.
Forgiveness is not just for
The other person—but for ourselves
And the mistakes we have made,
And the guilt and shame we still hold on to.
Forgiveness in the deepest sense
Is forgiving ourselves
For separating ourselves from a loving God.
Forgiveness means
Forgiving God and our
Possible misperceptions of God
That we have ever been
Abandoned or left alone.
To forgive this very instant
Means no longer being
King or Queen of the Procrastinators’ Club.
For our feeling joined in Spirit
As one with everyone
And everyone with God.
It is never too early
To forgive.
It is never too late
to forgive.
How long does it take
to forgive?
It depends on your belief system.
If you believe it will never happen,
It will never happen.
If you believe it will take six months,
It will take six months.
If you believe it will take but a second,
That’s all that it will take.
That peace will come to the world
When each of us takes the
Responsibility of forgiving everyone,
Including ourselves, completely.