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(as presented by Lisa Bishop)
Another act of courage is letting go of an offense. Choosing to forgive when you have been hurt.
Think of the last time someone said or did something that hurt or offended you. Just a few days ago a close friend of mine sent an email that had my heart racing and my blood boiling. I felt the email was hurtful and insensitive. If I am honest, I ruminated on and rehearsed the offense which only led to greater dis-ease in my body and not so kind and loving thoughts flowing through my mind. As I got a grip on my emotions and brought them to the Lord, he graciously helped me calm down and bring my hurt and concerns to him.
At first he showed me how in the past I have done the very same thing that my friend did to me. There have been times when I have said things that, while not intended to cause hurt, have certainly been hurtful and offensive to others. There have been emails I have sent that had a not so gracious and loving tone to them. It was the ole “look at the log in your eye first Lisa!” Now this is not to discount that I felt hurt, but rather than continuing to brew on the offense, I took it to God.
Has a co-worker said or done something that offended you? Is there a friendship that has become distant because of a relational hurt? It takes courage to extend forgiveness. It takes moral strength to obey God’s instructions when it comes to letting go of an offense. And God’s Word has a lot to say about forgiveness:
“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32).
“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you” (Colossians 3:13).
“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice, forgiving one another, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:30).
“Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times” (Matthew 18:21-22).
Now that is a tall order but with God, it is possible. Bring the offense to God and ask him to give you courage to overlook it.