“Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.” — Colossians 3:13 (NLT)

Ah, sweet forgiveness…

Hundreds (thousands?) of books have been written on forgiving, so how can I write just one small blog post about it? I can’t and I won’t even try. But I will show you the photograph that graced the bulletin board over my desk for three years.

Imagine the anger and the hatred that would disappear from this president if he would only forgive those he holds a grudge against. In my kinder moments, I feel sorry for him–indeed, for anyone who can’t forgive. It is a radical act, against all our selfish instincts for survival, yet it sets us so free. No longer a prisoner of our bitterness and resentment, forgiving allows us to love again.

And here’s a freebie verse: “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven…” — Luke 6:37 (ESV)

And that is a segue into tomorrow’s final verse of this series–Colossians 3:14.