Forgiveness is not just a virtue of the brave, it is a virtue of those who wish to live a healthy life. It is a virtue of those who wish to live a life of joy. It is the characteristic of those who refuse to be bound by their past. It is a characteristic of those who make the conscious choice to rise above their wounds. I seek to be such a person.
Recently I was listening to TED talk about growing up. If you want to listen to is, it is entitled, "growing up" it was first aired on NPR on the TED radio hour on Aug 1, 2014.
Anyway, this guy who was given up for adoption as a baby, was adopted by a family who subsequently give him back to the system when he was about 10 years old. In his twenties, he realized something that struck me as profound. "If I am going to know how to forgive in this life, I have to forgive the people that hurt me the most."
As I was listening and driving, I started to cry. I decided for the first time in my life, that I was going to forgive my mother. "Mom, I here, in writing, and in my heart, forgive you."
I loved this guy's wisdom and it made sense to me. If I would forgive anyone, I must forgive her.
And so I decided to visit someone that had hurt me in the past. I simply wanted to say, "Hi, how are you? It's good to see you, and I wish you well." You see, I know that they have been suffering a bit over what happened between us, and I wanted to release them. I wanted them to know that I was ok. I wanted them to know that I have let it go. I wanted them to have one less thing to worry about.
So I made the visit and it went great.
If you want to be able to forgive in this life, start with the person that hurt you the most. It is a very freeing experience.
It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.
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I am leading a River Cruise to Belgium and the Netherlands March 19-27, 2022. If you are interested in reading about the trip or joining in, the link is below.
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