Learning Forgiveness Again...

There have been several times in my life when I have needed to forgive, sometimes it has been a stranger, sometimes it has been someone very close to me. There have also been many times in my life I have needed forgiveness and have needed to say I was sorry for things that I have done wrong. We are all human and we make mistakes. It goes both ways.

Very recently, my Husband and I were impacted very negatively by another person's choice, someone we trusted and even considered a friend. This has put a lot of strain on us and has caused us to face a trial we were not expecting. The first couple of days, I felt consumed by feelings of anger, betrayal. I kept asking why this person would do this to us? It was eating me up inside.

Then I turned to God in prayer and remembered the words of the Savior when he said: "What manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am." Well who was he?

He went about his life doing good to others. Healing them, blessing them, and raising them mortally and spiritually. 

He in no way deserved the many times He was treated unkindly, unfairly, and even cruelly. Yet, He didn't let it change how he treated others and how he served them.

He was betrayed by one of his closest friends/apostles, which betrayal led to his Crucifixion. Yet, he still reached out with love to that individual and forgave him.

He pleaded with the Father while upon the cross to forgive those who had just beaten him, humiliated him, hurt him, and nailed him to the cross.

I cannot begin to imagine all that He suffered. I know that in this life, the things that I suffer and pass through are nothing compared to His sufferings. But I know that I can look to His example and I can make the choice to forgive. When we don't forgive others it doesn't hurt them the way that it hurts us. It cankers our souls. It is like adding a ball and chain to our own legs each time, making it harder and harder to move forward with our lives and progress spiritually. This doesn't mean that we allow ourselves to be abused or hurt by those people over and over, there are times when it is absolutely necessary to distance ourselves from that person for our own safety or sanity. There may be situations where we never receive an apology, but we can still choose to turn it over to the Lord and say for ourselves I will forgive this person. Then we go about our lives trying to do better each day, trying to serve, to uplift, and to help others. If we are willing to do this, I believe that when we need forgiveness from others, and from God, He will be more willing to grant it, if we are willing to forgive others and follow the perfect example of His Son.