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Forgiveness
is
at
the
Yet
forgiveness
is
hard.
When
a
husband
leaves,
a
child
suffers,
a
man
is
cheated
out
of
thousands
of
dollars,
or
a
parents
watches
a
child
die
because
somebody
drank
and
then
drove,
the
hurt
runs
deep.
Hurt,
when
nurtured,
can
easily
become
hate.
Soon,
bitterness
is
so
much
a
part
of
us
that
we
cannot
imagine
living
without
it. Perhaps
more
common
are
hurt
caused
by
displays
of
insensitivity
that
then
produce
alienation.
We
see
it
in
people
in
the
church
who
will
not
talk
to
others
in
the
same
congregation.
It
is
there
in
couples
who
have
built
walls
of
silence,
and
in
parents
who
don’t
know
how
to
relate
to
their
grown
children.
The
process
is
much
the
same—hurt,
hate,
bitterness.
To
teach
forgiveness,
we
must
experience
it.
We
must
practice
it.
Paul
said,
“.
.
.
in
humility
consider
others
better
than
yourselves”
(Phil.
2:3).
When
I
see
myself
clearly
it
is
hard
to
imagine
that
anyone
is
worse
than
I
am.
That
gives
me
perspective.
To
quote
the
apostle
again,
“Be
kind
and
compassionate
to
one
another,
forgiving
one
another,
just
as
in
Christ
God
forgave
you”
(Eph.
4:32).
The
experience
of
grace
gives
us
the
capacity
to
extend
grace.
By
its
nature,
grace
is
undeserved.
It
does
not
ignore
the
offense.
Rather,
grace
chooses
to
let
it
go.
Grace
seeks
reconciliation
whenever
possible. Robert
Edmiston
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