Forgiveness is man’s deepest need and highest achievement---Horace Bushnell

 

“…forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us”

Matthew 6:12 

I memorized the Lord’s Prayer when I was a little tyke. Sometimes my mom and dad would ask me to recite it before our meal at suppertime. Little did I know, back then, what Jesus was talking about here. And, I suspect that, even now, when we race through that prayer we pay little attention to this powerful statement. 

Let’s face it. Forgiveness isn’t easy! 

I’m struggling with that right now. An acquaintance has screwed up royally and, in doing so, burned nearly all of his bridges. I must just forgive? 

As an old news writer and a news junkie, however, I’m heartened by some of the stories I read. 

For example, in recent days there was a sad story in the news. 5 teenagers in Georgia were going to TP their teacher’s home. The instructor, however, learned of the plot and thought it would be fun to catch them in the act. But, the scared kids fled in their cars and one of them accidentally ran over the teacher! Jason Hughes, age 40, was dead. The teen driver faced homicide and trespassing charges. The four others faced lesser misdemeanor charges. 

Now the neat part of the story! 

Laura Hughes, Jason's wife, said that she fully supported having all charges against the students dropped. "This is a terrible tragedy, and our family is determined to prevent a separate tragedy from occurring, ruining the lives of these students," she told the New York Times. "This would be counter to Jason's lifelong dedication of investing in the lives of these children." 

The result of that amazing forgiveness: A district attorney has announced that the five teenagers will not be prosecuted! 

A couple more positive news stories. 

Recently a Grand Rapids small business owner was quoted as saying she would pray for the person who allegedly broke into her shop, stealing money from a cash register and cash box. Amazing forgiveness! 

Finally, one more story of tough forgiveness. The headline read: A Crooked Cop Gets Busted & Ends Up Working With The Innocent Man He Put In Jail For 4 Years! 

It happened in Benton Harbor. In 2005 Jamel McGee was falsely arrested for drug dealing. Former police officer Andrew Collins decided that day he was going to make certain he made a drug bust, and he didn’t care that the man was innocent. He falsified the report, and it put Jamel in jail for 4 years. 

A divine plan unfolded. The two started working together in a faith-based agency cafe, and that’s when they realized they had one huge issue to deal with! Jamel had in the past plotted his revenge, so he confronted Andrew. Surprisingly, the former crooked cop didn’t lie or make excuses. Instead, he told Jamel what he had done was wrong, there was no excuse for his actions, and then he apologized. Once forgiveness happened they were then able to heal and move forward in their lives. 

The two have become best of friends and now give speeches together about the importance of forgiveness and redemption! 

"Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do."

- Colossians 3:13