There is the need to walk in FORGIVENESS throughout your EXISTENCE on earth. The American author Philip Yancey DESCRIBES forgiveness as an UNNATURAL act and says, 'You don't find dolphins forgiving sharks for eating their play mates. It's a dog-eat-dog world....not a dog-forgive-dog world.' BITTERNESS comes NATURALLY when you have been HURT, whereas, forgiving is SUPERNATURAL and requires God's enabling GRACE. But remember, Jesus said, 'lf you do not forgive... your Father will not forgive your sin' (Matthew 6:15 NIV). Humanly SPEAKING, there is not one single REASON God should forgive your SINS, yet the OFFENSES He PARDONS you for every day far OUTWEIGH anything you will EVER be ASKED to forgive OTHERS for. By FORGIVING, you change the whole DYNAMIC. You OPEN the door of a PRISON where you are both PRISONER and JAILOR, setting yourself and the other PERSON free. Grudges not only ISOLATE you from PEOPLE who were once FRIENDS, they actually SHORTEN your life by PRODUCING deadly enzymes that CONTRIBUTE to a host of physical AILMENTS.
One man told his counsellor, 'l wish my BROTHER could come to my WEDDING, but we haven't SPOKEN in years.' The counsellor asked, 'How come?' Pausing, the man replied, 'lt sounds RIDICULOUS now, but I don't even REMEMBER.' DRIFTING apart is the natural RESULT of an UNFORGIVING spirit; FORGIVENESS reverses the TREND by restoring and HEALING broken RELATIONSHIPS. It's a medical CERTAINTY that FORGIVENESS adds YEARS to your life. As a rule, when you talk to PEOPLE who have passed the eighty-year mark you find THEY are at PEACE with THEMSELVES because they have LEARNED to FORGIVE and let GO.
God's Servant
Rev. Alfred Acheampong.
