"I can
forgive, but I cannot forget," is only another way of saying,
"I will not forgive." Forgiveness ought to be like a
canceled note---torn in two, and burned up, so that it never can be
shown against one.
***
And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another,
even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
Ephesians 4:32
A man
once had too much to drink at a party. First, he made a foolish
spectacle of himself--even to the point of wearing the proverbial
lampshade as a hat--and then he passed out. Friends helped his wife
take him home and put him to bed. The next morning he was very
remorseful and asked his wife to forgive him. She agreed to
"forgive and forget" the incident.
As the months went by, however. the wife referred to the
incident from time to time, always with a little note of ridicule and
shame in her voice. Finally, the man grew weary of being reminded of
his bad behavior and said, " I thought you were going to forgive
and forget."
" I have forgiven and forgotten," the wife
argued, " but I just don't want you to forget that I have
forgiven and forgotten."
Once we have confronted an offender, we must remember
nothing is gained from harboring unforgiveness in our hearts.
Forgiveness requires a healing process inside us--to the point where
we no loner feel any pain at the memory of what the other person did
or said to injure us.
We "forget" when we no longer hurt! When you
make a commitment to forgive another person, ask the Lord to heal you
of the impact of that person's behavior on your life. Forgive,
forget, and start living again.
from
the book of : God's Little Devotional Book
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