Galatians 6:1-6

Galatians 6:1-6The Message (MSG)

Live creatively, friends. If someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore him, saving your critical comments for yourself. You might be needing forgiveness before the day’s out. Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ’s law. If you think you are too good for that, you are badly deceived.

Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don’t be impressed with yourself. Don’t compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life.

Be very sure now, you who have been trained to a self-sufficient maturity, that you enter into a generous common life with those who have trained you, sharing all the good things that you have and experience.

Sav(e) your critical comments for yourself. Because you might be needing forgiving before the day is over.

Those might be some of the hardest words to hear and obey in scripture.

Forgiveness is a practice. It's a practice because it takes practice.  And it's something that isn't done simply once, but over and over again.

There are people I have to forgive over and over. Sometimes the hurt has been so deep that I have to practice forgiving them again. In my sermon on Sunday, I mentioned the Biehls, who forgave the South African men who killed their daughter and now work side by side with them.  Recently I read a book by Desmond Tutu on forgiveness, and he talked about how they said that some days that had to forgive the men again. Sometimes the pain of missing their daughter is so hard, that they need to remind themselves of the forgiveness they willingly gave.

Forgiveness is complicated. Please don't let anyone tell you it isn't.  It takes work. It takes practice. And it takes support.  It isn't simply accepting an apology with a "that's OK, no problem," and it does mean that sometimes some kind of restitution has to be made. If someone committed a crime against you, forgiving them doesn't mean they don't have to still face their day in court.

It is something many people have problems doing, and that's OK! Because it's a practice, you aren't expected to get it perfectly every time.

I highly recommend Tutu's book (that he wrote with his daughter): The Book of Forgiving.  (You can find it here:http://smile.amazon.com/Book-Forgiving-Fourfold-Healing-Ourselves-ebook/dp/B00DB32SR6/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1441144874&sr=1-1&keywords=desmond+tutu). It's a wonderful book on how to heal and forgive.

Lord, teach me to forgive as you forgive. Help me especially when it seems so hard. Amen