DAILY BYTE
Throughout this week, we have been exploring the challenging journey of forgiveness. Forgiving others and ourselves means that we must learn to develop deep trust in the faithfulness of God. In the scripture from Exodus for today, Moses illustrates such a leap of faith beautifully. God tells Moses to stretch out his hand over the sea – to do a ridiculous, irrational thing. As he does it he dares to leave his heart unprotected, fully vulnerable. He is susceptible to looking like a brokenhearted fool, if the crazy scheme he heard from God doesn’t work.
But, we know the story. It is the theme of the entire scripture of God, as again and again we turn away. And again and again we are forgiven. We also see daily it in our own lives of forgiving and being forgiven. The waters part! God is faithful and makes a way for people to reach new life, walking together tediously and patiently through chaos and unpredictability on the way to a new land. It is the promised land away from imprisonment and slavery and closer to a new life of freedom in the heartland of God.
This land of South Africa is a land of truth and reconciliation. It is clearly an imperfect, often rocky, dirty, and treacherous land, but this is not just a land made of dirt and clay. In this land, we are able to live with freedom and hope through God’s forgiveness for all of us. We are made able to open our hearts and be vulnerable and reach for greater life than our imaginations can contain. An old Arab proverb states: Throw your heart out in front of you, and run ahead to catch it. Throw your heart out in front of you this week, as we learn, as fallible human beings to forgive and be forgiven by other people and by an immeasurably loving God. We do this with the promise of scripture that God is faithful and will part the waters of our struggle, leading us to a new promise of life in the heart of God.
PRAY AS YOU GO
We return at the end of this week to The Lord’s Prayer, where we began on Monday. As you pray this, keep in your heart that this is the prayer Jesus taught us to pray. This is the prayer that the body of Christ as been praying since some of the earliest stages of the church. As people who have been forgiven, we join together in this prayer with everyone who has prayed it in history. We are not alone. On the contrary, we are forgiven and we learn to forgive, as we join together with all people created and loved by God.
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
SCRIPTURE READING
Exodus 14:19-22
The angel of God who was going before the Israelite army moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from in front of them and took its place behind them. It came between the army of Egypt and the army of Israel. And so the cloud was there with the darkness, and it lit up the night; one did not come near the other all night. Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. The LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night, and turned the sea into dry land; and the waters were divided. The Israelites went into the sea on dry ground, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left.
Friday, 14 May 2010
Thursday, 13 May 2010
God’s Job and Our Job
DAILY BYTE
Someone once said that forgiveness is ultimately selfish. We do it for ourselves, to clear our consciences and just, you know, come out the better person. Well, consider today that forgiveness is never just about us. Forgiveness is about God. And since it is about God, and we all live in one community, as equal children of God, forgiveness is not only the heart of God but it is the heart – the lifeblood of our lives together. And living together, obviously, and yet all too painfully, takes a lifetime. Our journey into the heart of God’s forgiveness is hard and sad and takes a long time.
In a couple of months we'll commemorate again the anniversary of September 11. And I must say, it is with no small joy that I declare my thanks that I am in South Africa and not at home in the U.S. listening to “I’m proud to be an American” on repeat on the radio. But, two years after the tragedy of September 11, in 2003, when we were continuing on the path seeking after Osama bin Ladin, General Stormin’ Norman Schwarzkopf was asked whether, or not, we should forgive Bin Ladin. Stormin’ Norman replied, “Forgiveness is up to God. I just hope we hurry up the meeting.”
It seems that the Word of God speaks to Schwartzkopf’s difficult and somewhat disturbing statement that forgiveness is God’s role and that our role is to lead people to death so that they can meet God more quickly. Instead of leading us into war with one another, the scriptures lead us straight into the heart of God. We must ask, as we look at them – what is God’s role in this challenging journey of grief, lament, and healing forgiveness? What is our role in this journey together?
What do the scriptures say to us about who God is? And, what do the scriptures say to us about who God made us to be and calls us to be? Reflect for a moment today on the graciousness of our creator God. Reflect on how we have been created and how we are called by God to live together in community with one another and in relationship with the infinitely unselfish, forgiving God who made us.
PRAY AS YOU GO
Thank you, Lord that you are the creator, and we have been created by you in love, by love, and for love. We pray that you will teach us how to accept the forgiveness you have given us and continue to give to us every day. Help us learn to understand both the limits and possibilities of our humanity. Teach us more of who you are and who you have made us to be. And as we struggle through to this lifelong learning, help us to be patient with ourselves and others, having eyes to see and ears to hear the depths of your forgiving love. Amen.
SCRIPTURE READING
Psalm 66
Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion; and to you shall vows be performed,
O you who answer prayer! To you all flesh shall come.
When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us, you forgive our transgressions.
Happy are those whom you choose and bring near to live in your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, your holy temple.
By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance, O God of our salvation; you are the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas.
By your strength you established the mountains; you are girded with might.
You silence the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples.
Those who live at earth's farthest bounds are awed by your signs; you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.
You visit the earth and water it, you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide the people with grain, for so you have prepared it.
You water its furrows abundantly, settling its ridges, softening it with showers, and blessing its growth.
You crown the year with your bounty; your wagon tracks overflow with richness.
The pastures of the wilderness overflow, the hills gird themselves with joy, the meadows clothe themselves with flocks, the valleys deck themselves with grain, they shout and sing together for joy.
Someone once said that forgiveness is ultimately selfish. We do it for ourselves, to clear our consciences and just, you know, come out the better person. Well, consider today that forgiveness is never just about us. Forgiveness is about God. And since it is about God, and we all live in one community, as equal children of God, forgiveness is not only the heart of God but it is the heart – the lifeblood of our lives together. And living together, obviously, and yet all too painfully, takes a lifetime. Our journey into the heart of God’s forgiveness is hard and sad and takes a long time.
In a couple of months we'll commemorate again the anniversary of September 11. And I must say, it is with no small joy that I declare my thanks that I am in South Africa and not at home in the U.S. listening to “I’m proud to be an American” on repeat on the radio. But, two years after the tragedy of September 11, in 2003, when we were continuing on the path seeking after Osama bin Ladin, General Stormin’ Norman Schwarzkopf was asked whether, or not, we should forgive Bin Ladin. Stormin’ Norman replied, “Forgiveness is up to God. I just hope we hurry up the meeting.”
It seems that the Word of God speaks to Schwartzkopf’s difficult and somewhat disturbing statement that forgiveness is God’s role and that our role is to lead people to death so that they can meet God more quickly. Instead of leading us into war with one another, the scriptures lead us straight into the heart of God. We must ask, as we look at them – what is God’s role in this challenging journey of grief, lament, and healing forgiveness? What is our role in this journey together?
What do the scriptures say to us about who God is? And, what do the scriptures say to us about who God made us to be and calls us to be? Reflect for a moment today on the graciousness of our creator God. Reflect on how we have been created and how we are called by God to live together in community with one another and in relationship with the infinitely unselfish, forgiving God who made us.
PRAY AS YOU GO
Thank you, Lord that you are the creator, and we have been created by you in love, by love, and for love. We pray that you will teach us how to accept the forgiveness you have given us and continue to give to us every day. Help us learn to understand both the limits and possibilities of our humanity. Teach us more of who you are and who you have made us to be. And as we struggle through to this lifelong learning, help us to be patient with ourselves and others, having eyes to see and ears to hear the depths of your forgiving love. Amen.
SCRIPTURE READING
Psalm 66
Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion; and to you shall vows be performed,
O you who answer prayer! To you all flesh shall come.
When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us, you forgive our transgressions.
Happy are those whom you choose and bring near to live in your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, your holy temple.
By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance, O God of our salvation; you are the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas.
By your strength you established the mountains; you are girded with might.
You silence the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples.
Those who live at earth's farthest bounds are awed by your signs; you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.
You visit the earth and water it, you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide the people with grain, for so you have prepared it.
You water its furrows abundantly, settling its ridges, softening it with showers, and blessing its growth.
You crown the year with your bounty; your wagon tracks overflow with richness.
The pastures of the wilderness overflow, the hills gird themselves with joy, the meadows clothe themselves with flocks, the valleys deck themselves with grain, they shout and sing together for joy.
Wednesday, 12 May 2010
It’s Not About Just Being Nice
DAILY BYTE
When I was a little girl, I remember clearly my mother, father, and other elders navigating arguments between my brother and I. They usually went something like: “It was his fault!” “No, it was her fault!” And then, my mother mediating with a “Just say you’re sorry...no, say it like you mean it!” We are often taught from a young age that forgiveness must be immediately given and immediately accepted because that is the nice and fair way to operate. We’re also taught that it is socially acceptable to put on a happy face and pretend that nothing’s overtly wrong, even when underneath, we are navigating challenging and broken personal relationships and community dynamics that constantly need for us to be engaging in a journey toward forgiveness.
But, being a Christian is not about rushing to conclusions. Being a Christian is not about pretending to be something or someone that we are not. Being a Christian is about journeying a long path together. And that path miraculously and graciously draws us nearer and nearer to the heart of God’s forgiveness and nearer and nearer to one another.
It’s easy for us to think that we can temporarily ignore reflecting on the need for forgiveness, if we are not particularly angry with anyone at this point in time. But, perhaps, this is a poignant time in your life for you to be thinking about the need for us to forgive and be forgiven. Maybe someone was unfaithful to you in a relationship, hurt you physically, or just didn’t live up to expectations. Perhaps someone has wronged you in a way that you find simply unforgiveable. Or maybe, you are finding it impossible to forgive yourself. I know no one who is free from these kinds of struggles.
A few months ago, I was sitting in a course on teaching Bible studies during my final semester of seminary. I was minding my own business and tuning in and out of the discussion led by my classmates on loving your enemies. The final exercise, as their forty-five minutes of Bible study fame wound down was for us all to write letters to the people we considered our enemies – the people we were unable to forgive. I thought to myself, well, I don’t have any big grudges – I generally get along with people. And then, I put the pencil to the paper, and out of the deepest corner of my heart popped a man who had wronged me indirectly through hurting my father. I sat paralyzed, unable even to write his name. My heart was numb, hard, guarded. I wondered, if I forgive him, does it mean that I’m condoning his behavior? Does it even matter, if I forgive him? I’ll probably never see him again ... he may never find out. What’s the point of opening myself up to this pain again?
I wonder who is in the long hard process of forgiving you. I wonder whom you are trying to forgive. I wonder if you are blowing through life so quickly that you find it hard to take a moment and think about the status of your relationships and your community’s life.
And so, take a moment to be still today, even putting a pen to paper, if you need to. Pray over your relationships without avoidance and fear but with patience for the process of forgiveness and knowledge that God has already forgiven us all from the deepest part of God’s heart. If you wonder if there is a point to our forgiveness, take a few more moments to consider the overwhelming love that is all of ours through this heart of God. Choose today to receive it.
PRAY AS YOU GO
As you are still and thinking about those whom you need to forgive and those forgiving you, pray this prayer in conversation with God, knowing that all has already been forgiven.
Father, forgive them.
Father, forgive us.
Father, forgive.
SCRIPTURE READING
1 John 1:8 – 1 John 2:2
If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
When I was a little girl, I remember clearly my mother, father, and other elders navigating arguments between my brother and I. They usually went something like: “It was his fault!” “No, it was her fault!” And then, my mother mediating with a “Just say you’re sorry...no, say it like you mean it!” We are often taught from a young age that forgiveness must be immediately given and immediately accepted because that is the nice and fair way to operate. We’re also taught that it is socially acceptable to put on a happy face and pretend that nothing’s overtly wrong, even when underneath, we are navigating challenging and broken personal relationships and community dynamics that constantly need for us to be engaging in a journey toward forgiveness.
But, being a Christian is not about rushing to conclusions. Being a Christian is not about pretending to be something or someone that we are not. Being a Christian is about journeying a long path together. And that path miraculously and graciously draws us nearer and nearer to the heart of God’s forgiveness and nearer and nearer to one another.
It’s easy for us to think that we can temporarily ignore reflecting on the need for forgiveness, if we are not particularly angry with anyone at this point in time. But, perhaps, this is a poignant time in your life for you to be thinking about the need for us to forgive and be forgiven. Maybe someone was unfaithful to you in a relationship, hurt you physically, or just didn’t live up to expectations. Perhaps someone has wronged you in a way that you find simply unforgiveable. Or maybe, you are finding it impossible to forgive yourself. I know no one who is free from these kinds of struggles.
A few months ago, I was sitting in a course on teaching Bible studies during my final semester of seminary. I was minding my own business and tuning in and out of the discussion led by my classmates on loving your enemies. The final exercise, as their forty-five minutes of Bible study fame wound down was for us all to write letters to the people we considered our enemies – the people we were unable to forgive. I thought to myself, well, I don’t have any big grudges – I generally get along with people. And then, I put the pencil to the paper, and out of the deepest corner of my heart popped a man who had wronged me indirectly through hurting my father. I sat paralyzed, unable even to write his name. My heart was numb, hard, guarded. I wondered, if I forgive him, does it mean that I’m condoning his behavior? Does it even matter, if I forgive him? I’ll probably never see him again ... he may never find out. What’s the point of opening myself up to this pain again?
I wonder who is in the long hard process of forgiving you. I wonder whom you are trying to forgive. I wonder if you are blowing through life so quickly that you find it hard to take a moment and think about the status of your relationships and your community’s life.
And so, take a moment to be still today, even putting a pen to paper, if you need to. Pray over your relationships without avoidance and fear but with patience for the process of forgiveness and knowledge that God has already forgiven us all from the deepest part of God’s heart. If you wonder if there is a point to our forgiveness, take a few more moments to consider the overwhelming love that is all of ours through this heart of God. Choose today to receive it.
PRAY AS YOU GO
As you are still and thinking about those whom you need to forgive and those forgiving you, pray this prayer in conversation with God, knowing that all has already been forgiven.
Father, forgive them.
Father, forgive us.
Father, forgive.
SCRIPTURE READING
1 John 1:8 – 1 John 2:2
If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
Tuesday, 11 May 2010
The Heart of the Body
DAILY BYTE
The human body can seem like organized chaos. If you have ever been really ill or had an operation or known someone who was ill, you know that the body can be a churning mass of unpredictability. And sometimes when someone is unmercifully ill or overtaken by an addiction, we even say that they are imprisoned by their body.
I am known as a bit of a typhoid Mary. In fact, my best friend jokes that if any sort of strange disease is within a fifty kilometer radius, I will be happy to give it a home in my body. In fact, just about two months ago, I was visiting the doctor for a routine check-up. I was listening to my heart on the pulse-ox monitor, and it was bouncing all over the place. I started avoiding the eyes of the nurse, trying to get myself to breathe deeply and evenly. But, I will never forget the moment when that heartbeat seemed to hesitate. It paused for just a hair too long and seemed to stop. Now, I’m usually a pretty tough cookie, but when the heart, the core that supplies life to our thinking and feeling and being – when that seemed to stop working the way the heart was made to work, my whole world was thrown into chaos. It was as though I was imprisoned by the thought that if something were wrong with my heart, I could actually be prevented from living the way that I believed God was calling me to live. Knowing that my grandfather died from a congenital heart defect, I was afraid that my source of life, could actually fail me.
It was, perhaps, a bit dramatic, given that I had yet even to go to the heart specialist, so all these scenarios of death and chaos might really have been just a little too much sun, a stressful day, and not enough breakfast – which they turned out to be, thankfully. But, we all know that often, it is a different story, and it was a crisis of faith for a young person who is all too aware that life is strangely short and that the heart is strangely necessary for the body to continue to live.
But this devotional is not really about anatomy. It is about what it means to be part of the body of Christ. We must ask: what is at the heart of this body? Where is the heart of God? Well, let me suggest today that the heart of God is found at the heart of a covenant – a promise – made with God’s people – you and me – thousands of years ago. It is a covenant founded on none other than forgiveness.
I wonder what we need to do to learn more about this covenant promise that God has with us in the body of Christ. I wonder what it means for your individual life and the life of the community in which you live that through God’s love, all of your sins have already been forgiven.
PRAY AS YOU GO
Merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed – by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry, and we humbly repent. For the sake of your son Jesus Christ have mercy on us and forgive us that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways for the glory of your name through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
SCRIPTURE READING
Colossians 3:13-15
Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful.
The human body can seem like organized chaos. If you have ever been really ill or had an operation or known someone who was ill, you know that the body can be a churning mass of unpredictability. And sometimes when someone is unmercifully ill or overtaken by an addiction, we even say that they are imprisoned by their body.
I am known as a bit of a typhoid Mary. In fact, my best friend jokes that if any sort of strange disease is within a fifty kilometer radius, I will be happy to give it a home in my body. In fact, just about two months ago, I was visiting the doctor for a routine check-up. I was listening to my heart on the pulse-ox monitor, and it was bouncing all over the place. I started avoiding the eyes of the nurse, trying to get myself to breathe deeply and evenly. But, I will never forget the moment when that heartbeat seemed to hesitate. It paused for just a hair too long and seemed to stop. Now, I’m usually a pretty tough cookie, but when the heart, the core that supplies life to our thinking and feeling and being – when that seemed to stop working the way the heart was made to work, my whole world was thrown into chaos. It was as though I was imprisoned by the thought that if something were wrong with my heart, I could actually be prevented from living the way that I believed God was calling me to live. Knowing that my grandfather died from a congenital heart defect, I was afraid that my source of life, could actually fail me.
It was, perhaps, a bit dramatic, given that I had yet even to go to the heart specialist, so all these scenarios of death and chaos might really have been just a little too much sun, a stressful day, and not enough breakfast – which they turned out to be, thankfully. But, we all know that often, it is a different story, and it was a crisis of faith for a young person who is all too aware that life is strangely short and that the heart is strangely necessary for the body to continue to live.
But this devotional is not really about anatomy. It is about what it means to be part of the body of Christ. We must ask: what is at the heart of this body? Where is the heart of God? Well, let me suggest today that the heart of God is found at the heart of a covenant – a promise – made with God’s people – you and me – thousands of years ago. It is a covenant founded on none other than forgiveness.
I wonder what we need to do to learn more about this covenant promise that God has with us in the body of Christ. I wonder what it means for your individual life and the life of the community in which you live that through God’s love, all of your sins have already been forgiven.
PRAY AS YOU GO
Merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed – by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry, and we humbly repent. For the sake of your son Jesus Christ have mercy on us and forgive us that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways for the glory of your name through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
SCRIPTURE READING
Colossians 3:13-15
Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful.
Monday, 10 May 2010
A Deep Challenge at the Heart of God
DAILY BYTE
The argument
My best friend and I have only argued – really truly gotten so feisty that we told each other we should never speak about the topic again – once in the whole of our friendship. And I have known her for over ten years… Oh, it was a heck of an argument, and I remember it well…
We were sharing a flat over a summer during varsity, working at internships. And since we were students doing virtually unpaid jobs, this was, as you can imagine, a very small flat. Such close quarters seem either to make for extremely close friendships or worst enemies. But, she and I were like sisters, so while we had our tiffs, we usually managed graciously enough to forgive each other for the ways we daily stepped (sometimes literally) on each others’ toes. One day, however, we were getting ready to go out for dinner, doing the close quarters dance, weaving in and out of the bathroom, barely missing singeing one another with the curling iron, and for some unknown reason, she said, “You know, there are just some things that are unforgiveable.” To which I replied, perhaps a bit too hastily, “No, no I don’t think there are. All sins are equal, and it’s not for us to decide what is forgivable and what is not.”
Ayayay. It was as though I had just pushed all of her buttons at once. You would’ve thought I had said, let’s go bungee jump off the Eiffel Tower while shooting off firecrackers from our hips, throwing peanuts to the crowd, and singing God Bless the USA. Her response was, “You’ve got to be kidding me… How can you possibly say that all sins are equal? Do you honestly think that we’re supposed to forgive people like Hitler for slaughtering thousands of people the same way that I forgive you for smudging toothpaste on my shirt?” Good question. At the time, I insisted that it may be hard, but of course we must forgive both sins the same way.
Unsurprisingly, she persisted: “So, you’re telling me that if people brutally killed my father, I should just forgive them? You’ve got to be joking – I would rather die.” To which I replied, as our debate heated up to scorching levels, “Well, that makes sense – because you would die. Your insides would fester from all of that built up animosity.” Once again, perhaps it wasn’t the most sensitive remark… Because finally, she said, “You know, I think we just should never talk about things like this, including politics and religion, ever again.”
Can you imagine best friends who could never talk about politics, religion, and the deeply troubling but all too real fact that in life we are on a constant journey of learning how to forgive? Who among us has never grappled with whether or not to forgive someone? Who has never needed the forgiveness of others?
I am hugely thankful that even though that dialogue with my best friend over five years ago led us to a conversational dead end, we are now in the process of learning to discuss these things together and listen to one another more carefully. We still disagree about many things, but I think we may be starting to realize that forgiveness on all levels is at the heart of what makes such relationships tick. And as all of us in every relationship belong to God, forgiveness seems to be what makes the heart of God tick, as well. This week we will be exploring the challenging, long journey of forgiveness. We acknowledge that it is difficult – perhaps even seeming impossible. And yet, we also acknowledge the life-giving power of this journey with one another and with God.
PRAY AS YOU GO
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
SCRIPTURE READING
Matthew 18:21-22
Then Peter came and said to him, "Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?" Jesus said to him, "Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times.
The argument
My best friend and I have only argued – really truly gotten so feisty that we told each other we should never speak about the topic again – once in the whole of our friendship. And I have known her for over ten years… Oh, it was a heck of an argument, and I remember it well…
We were sharing a flat over a summer during varsity, working at internships. And since we were students doing virtually unpaid jobs, this was, as you can imagine, a very small flat. Such close quarters seem either to make for extremely close friendships or worst enemies. But, she and I were like sisters, so while we had our tiffs, we usually managed graciously enough to forgive each other for the ways we daily stepped (sometimes literally) on each others’ toes. One day, however, we were getting ready to go out for dinner, doing the close quarters dance, weaving in and out of the bathroom, barely missing singeing one another with the curling iron, and for some unknown reason, she said, “You know, there are just some things that are unforgiveable.” To which I replied, perhaps a bit too hastily, “No, no I don’t think there are. All sins are equal, and it’s not for us to decide what is forgivable and what is not.”
Ayayay. It was as though I had just pushed all of her buttons at once. You would’ve thought I had said, let’s go bungee jump off the Eiffel Tower while shooting off firecrackers from our hips, throwing peanuts to the crowd, and singing God Bless the USA. Her response was, “You’ve got to be kidding me… How can you possibly say that all sins are equal? Do you honestly think that we’re supposed to forgive people like Hitler for slaughtering thousands of people the same way that I forgive you for smudging toothpaste on my shirt?” Good question. At the time, I insisted that it may be hard, but of course we must forgive both sins the same way.
Unsurprisingly, she persisted: “So, you’re telling me that if people brutally killed my father, I should just forgive them? You’ve got to be joking – I would rather die.” To which I replied, as our debate heated up to scorching levels, “Well, that makes sense – because you would die. Your insides would fester from all of that built up animosity.” Once again, perhaps it wasn’t the most sensitive remark… Because finally, she said, “You know, I think we just should never talk about things like this, including politics and religion, ever again.”
Can you imagine best friends who could never talk about politics, religion, and the deeply troubling but all too real fact that in life we are on a constant journey of learning how to forgive? Who among us has never grappled with whether or not to forgive someone? Who has never needed the forgiveness of others?
I am hugely thankful that even though that dialogue with my best friend over five years ago led us to a conversational dead end, we are now in the process of learning to discuss these things together and listen to one another more carefully. We still disagree about many things, but I think we may be starting to realize that forgiveness on all levels is at the heart of what makes such relationships tick. And as all of us in every relationship belong to God, forgiveness seems to be what makes the heart of God tick, as well. This week we will be exploring the challenging, long journey of forgiveness. We acknowledge that it is difficult – perhaps even seeming impossible. And yet, we also acknowledge the life-giving power of this journey with one another and with God.
PRAY AS YOU GO
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
SCRIPTURE READING
Matthew 18:21-22
Then Peter came and said to him, "Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?" Jesus said to him, "Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times.
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