forgiveness is gift

ok i am going to be honest, i stole the idea for this post from our sermon at church on sunday. BUT, in my defense it was a GREAT sermon. the first picture was on the cover of our bulletin. i am so glad that i was able to find it. i love it. you want to know what else i love...GOOGLE IMAGES.
do you ever hear a sermon that just touches you? i mean i know that they all should and each one i hear is meaning full, but one that brings tears to your eyes because you know how powerful the message is. well that's what happened to me on sunday. 

our gospel reading was


Matthew 18:23-35. 

   ²³ “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. ²⁴ As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. ²⁵ Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
   ²⁶ “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’²⁷ The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
   ²⁸ “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
   ²⁹ “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’
   ³⁰ “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. ³¹ When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.
   ³² “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. ³³ Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ ³⁴ In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
   ³⁵ “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

am i like that servant? yes i am in someways. like when the servant comes begging the king to have patience with him. yep, i beg daily for mercy.  i am really hoping that because the Lord forgives me daily i show others the same compassion. we are ALL human and make mistakes right. i sometimes forget, ok i forget alot that we are a fallen world. 


i am the worst when it comes to my husband. shouldn't he be mr. perfect all the time. well, sure but if i expect that then i better be prepared to be mrs. perfect. ha! that's not going to happen. i am human. i guess my point is that i too often get wrapped up in unrealistic expectations of people. which leaves me vulnerable to hurts. 


Proverbs 19:11 "Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense."


When i think about Jesus' love for us and all that he endured in order for us to be forgiven my head spins. can you imagine if we showed 1/10 of Jesus' compassion what a peaceful and wonderful world we'd live in?

 forgiveness...
1. The goal in life is to forgive and be forgiven.
2. Forgiving is the most RELIEVING & BLESSED act we can   carry out. it sets you free.
3. Not forgiving takes tremendous effort. It is actually harder to hold a grudge.
4. forgiveness is not a weakness
'The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”
~Mahatma Gandhi
5. before you can forgive others you must forgive yourself.

{source for all}

Ephesians 4:32 "Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you."

Matthew 5:44 ESV But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

Bottom Line 
Forgivness Is A Gift
Utilize it!