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Mercy、Sympathy
Forgetting and Forgiveness
A friend of Clara Barton
founder of the American Red Cross
once reminded her of an especially cruel
thing that had been done to her years before. But Miss Barton seemed not to
recall it. “Don’t you remember it?” her
friend asked.
“No
” Came
the reply
“I distinctly remember forgetting it.”
You can’t be
free and happy if you harbor grudges
so put them away. Get rid of them.
Collect postage stamps
or collect coins
if you wish—but
don’t
collect grudges. ── Michael P. Green《Illustrations for Biblical
Preaching》
Forgetting and Forgiveness
A man who was telling his
friend about an argument he’d had with his wife
commented
“Oh
how I hate it
every time we have an argument
she
gets historical.”
The friend replied
“You
mean hysterical.}
“No
” he
insisted. “I mean historical. Every time we argue she drags up
everything from the past and holds it against me!” ── Michael P. Green《Illustrations
for Biblical Preaching》
Example
of Human Forgiveness
When
the first missionaries came to the province of Alberta
Canada
they were
savagely opposed by a young chief of the Cree Indians named Maskepetoon. Eventually he responded to the gospel
and accepted Christ. Shortly
afterward
a member of the Blackfoot tribe who hated him killed his
father. Maskepetoon rode into the
village where the murderer lived and demanded that he be brought before
him. Confronting the guilty man
he
said
"You have killed my father
so now YOU must be my father. You shall ride my best horse and wear my
best clothes." In utter
amazement and remorse his enemy exclaimed
"My son
now you have killed
me!" He meant
of course
that
the hate in his own heart had been completely erased by the forgiveness and
kindness of the Indian chief. ── Michael P. Green《Illustrations for Biblical Preaching》
Human
Enjoined Forgiveness
Some
years ago
Dr. M.R. De Haan
founder of the Radio Bible Class
said
"You
can't judge the spirituality of a Christian on the basis of his prayers
since
praying is often done for its effect on the listeners. Nor can you gauge a person's spiritual
status by the loudness of his 'amens' and 'hallelujahs.' Even the liberality of one's giving is
not an infallible test. It
too may
be done for personal recognition or to ease one's conscience. I'm convinced that the surest test of
the depth of our relationship with God is found in our willingness to forgive
others." Showing this attitude
through acts of kindness for those who have offended us often erases all
feelings of bitterness in their hearts. ── Michael P. Green《Illustrations for Biblical
Preaching》
A lady answered the
knock on her door to find a man with a sad expression.
"I'm sorry to disturb
you
" he said
"but I'm collecting money for an unfortunate family in
the neighborhood. The husband is out of work
the kids are hungry
the
utilities will soon be cut off
and worse
they're going to be kicked out of
their apartment if they don't pay the rent by this afternoon."
"I'll be happy
to help
" said the woman with great concern. "But who are you?"
"I'm the
landlord
" he replied. ── Jon H. Allen.
Years after the
death of President Calvin Coolidge
this story came to light. In the early days
of his presidency
Coolidge awoke one morning in his hotel room to find a cat
burglar going through his pockets. Coolidge spoke up
asking the burglar not to
take his watch chain because it contained an engraved charm he wanted to keep.
Coolidge then engaged the thief in quiet conversation and discovered he was a
college student who had no money to pay his hotel bill or buy a ticket back to
campus. Coolidge counted $32 out of his wallet -- which he had also persuaded
the dazed young man to give back! -- declared it to be a loan
and advised the
young man to leave the way he had come so as to avoid the Secret Service! (Yes
the loan was paid back.) ── Today in the Word
October 8
1992.
A mother once
approached Napoleon seeking a pardon for her son. The emperor replied that the
young man had committed a certain offense twice and justice demanded
death.
"But I don't
ask for justice
" the mother explained. "I plead for
mercy."
"But your son
does not deserve mercy
" Napoleon replied.
"Sir
" the
woman cried
"it would not be mercy if he deserved it
and mercy is all I
ask for."
"Well
then
"
the emperor said
"I will have mercy." And he spared the woman's
son. ── Luis Palau
Experiencing God's Forgiveness
Multnomah
Press
1984.
A man put up a sign
in his yard that read: "Puppies for Sale." Among those who came to
inquire was a young boy. "Please
Mister
" he said
"I'd like to
buy one of your puppies if they don't cost too much." "Well
son
they're $25." The boy looked crushed. "I've only got two dollars and
five cents. Could I see them anyway?" "Of course. Maybe we can work
something out
" said the man. The lad's eyes danced at the sight of those five
little balls of fur. "I heard that one has a bad leg
" he said.
"Yes
I'm afraid she'll be crippled for life." "Well
that's the
puppy I want. Could I pay for her a little at a time?" The man responded
"But she'll always have a limp." Smiling bravely
the boy pulled up
one pant leg
revealing a brace. "I don't walk good either." Then
looking at the puppy sympathetically
he continued
"I guess she'll need a
lot of love and help. I sure did. It's not so easy being crippled." "Here
take her
" said the man. "I know you'll give her a good home. And
just forget the money." ── Our Daily Bread.
One of life's major
mistakes is being the last member in the family to come down with the flu --
after all the sympathy has run out. ── Bill Vaughan
NANA.
To carry a grudge is like being stung
to death by one bee.
William H. Walton.
Once armies carried cannonballs with
them
afraid they would meet the enemy somewhere and have nothing to shoot at
it. In terms of specific gravity
grudges are about as heavy as cannonballs.
But it makes little sense to carry them. Most likely
the "enemy" is
unaware of your enmity
and surely would be surprised to learn that you've been
stalking him with a cannonball in your pocket. So examine your grudges. Do what
armies do when hostilities are over: unload the cannonballs and stack them on
the courthouse lawn. Then marvel at how much easier it is to get around.
James Alexander Thom
Nuggets.
Not long before she died in 1988
in a
moment of surprising candor in television
Marghanita Laski
one of our
best-known secular humanists and novelists
said
"What I envy most about
you Christians is your forgiveness; I have nobody to forgive me."
John Stott in The Contemporary
Christian.
In "The Christian Leader
"
Don Ratzlaff retells a story Vernon Grounds came across in Ernest Gordon's Miracle
on the River Kwai. The Scottish soldiers
forced by their Japanese captors
to labor on a jungle railroad
had degenerated to barbarous behavior
but one
afternoon something happened. A shovel was missing. The officer in charge
became enraged. He demanded that the missing shovel be produced
or else. When
nobody in the squadron budged
the officer got his gun and threatened to kill
them all on the spot . . . It was obvious the officer meant what he had said.
Then
finally
one man stepped forward. The officer put away his gun
picked up
a shovel
and beat the man to death. When it was over
the survivors picked up
the bloody corpse and carried it with them to the second tool check. This time
no shovel was missing. Indeed
there had been a miscount at the first check
point. The word spread like wildfire through the whole camp. An innocent man
had been willing to die to save the others! . . . The incident had a profound
effect. . . The men began to treat each other like brothers. When the victorious
Allies swept in
the survivors
human skeletons
lined up in front of their
captors (and instead of attacking their captors) insisted: "No more
hatred. No more killing. Now what we need is forgiveness." Sacrificial
love has transforming power.
Don Ratzlaff
"The Christian
Leader".
In his book. Lee: The Last Years
Charles Bracelen Flood reports that after the Civil War
Robert E. Lee visited
a Kentucky lady who took him to the remains of a grand old tree in front of her
house. There she bitterly cried that its limbs and trunk had been destroyed by
Federal artillery fire. She looked to Lee for a word condemning the North or at
least sympathizing with her loss. After a brief silence
Lee said
"Cut it
down
my dear Madam
and forget it." It is better to forgive the
injustices of the past than to allow them to remain
let bitterness take root
and poison the rest of our life.
Michael Williams.
Bruce Goodrich was being initiated
into the cadet corps at Texas A & M University. One night
Bruce was forced
to run until he dropped -- but he never got up. Bruce Goodrich died before he
even entered college.
A short time after the tragedy
Bruce's father wrote this letter to the administration
faculty
student body
and the corps of cadets: "I would like to take this opportunity to express
the appreciation of my family for the great outpouring of concern and sympathy
from Texas A & M University and the college community over the loss of our
son Bruce. We were deeply touched by the tribute paid to him in the battalion.
We were particularly pleased to note that his Christian witness did not go
unnoticed during his brief time on campus."
Mr. Goodrich went on: "I hope it
will be some comfort to know that we harbor no ill will in the matter. We know
our God makes no mistakes. Bruce had an appointment with his Lord and is now
secure in his celestial home. When the question is asked
'Why did this
happen?' perhaps one answer will be
'So that many will consider where they
will spend eternity.'"
Our Daily Bread
March 22
1994.
When the first missionaries came to
Alberta
Canada
they were savagely opposed by a young chief of the Cree
Indians named Maskepetoon. But he responded to the gospel and accepted Christ.
Shortly afterward
a member of the Blackfoot tribe killed his father.
Maskepetoon rode into the village where the murderer lived and demanded that he
be brought before him. Confronting the guilty man
he said
"You have
killed my father
so now you must be my father. You shall ride my best horse
and wear my best clothes." In utter amazement and remorse his enemy
exclaimed
"My son
now you have killed me!" He meant
of course
that the hate in his own heart had been completely erased by the forgiveness
and kindness of the Indian chief.
Today in the Word
November 10
1993.
In May 1924
a shocked nation learned
two young men from Chicago
Richard Leopold and Nathan Loeb
had killed
14-year-old Bobbie Franks. What made the crime so shocking
and made Leopold
and Loeb household names
was the reason for the killing. The two became
obsessed with the idea of committing the "perfect murder
" and simply
picked young Franks as their victim. They were sentenced to life imprisonment
but Leopold was killed in a prison brawl in 1936. Claiming he wanted "a
chance to find redemption for myself and to help others
" Nathan Loeb
became a hospital technician at his parole in 1958. He died in 1971.
Today in the Word
October 3
1992.
A childhood accident caused poet
Elizabeth Barrett to lead a life of semi-invalidism before she married Robert
Browning in 1846. There's more to the story. In her youth
Elizabeth had been
watched over by her tyrannical father. When she and Robert were married
their
wedding was held in secret because of her father's disapproval. After the wedding
the Brownings sailed for Italy
where they lived for the rest of their lives.
But even though her parents had disowned her
Elizabeth never gave up on the
relationship. Almost weekly she wrote them letters. Not once did they reply.
After 10 years
she received a large box in the mail. Inside
Elizabeth found
all of her letters; not one had been opened! Today those letters are among the
most beautiful in classical English literature. Had her parents only read a few
of them
their relationship with Elizabeth might have been restored.
Daily Walk
May 30
1992.
In the 14th century
Robert Bruce of
Scotland was leading his men in a battle to gain independence from England.
Near the end of the conflict
the English wanted to capture Bruce to keep him
from the Scottish crown. So they put his own bloodhounds on his trail. When the
bloodhounds got close
Bruce could hear their baying. His attendant said
"We are done for. They are on your trail
and they will reveal your hiding
place." Bruce replied
"It's all right." Then he headed for a
stream that flowed through the forest. He plunged in and waded upstream a short
distance. When he came out on the other bank
he was in the depths of the
forest. Within minutes
the hounds
tracing their master's steps
came to the
bank. They went no farther. The English soldiers urged them on
but the trail
was broken. The stream had carried the scent away. A short time later
the
crown of Scotland rested on the head of Robert Bruce. The memory of our sins
prodded on by Satan
can be like those baying dogs--but a stream flows
red
with the blood of God's own Son. By grace through faith we are safe. No
sin-hound can touch us. The trail is broken by the precious blood of Christ.
"The purpose of the cross
" someone observed
"is to repair the
irreparable."
E. Lutzer
Putting Your Past Behind
You
Here's Life
1990
p.42.
There's a Spanish story of a father
and son who had become estranged. The son ran away
and the father set off to
find him. He searched for months to no avail. Finally
in a last desperate
effort to find him
the father put an ad in a Madrid newspaper. The ad read:
Dear Paco
meet me in front of this newspaper office at noon on Saturday. All
is forgiven. I love you. Your Father. On Saturday 800 Pacos showed up
looking
for forgiveness and love from their fathers.
Bits & Pieces
October 15
1992
pp. 13.
Chuck Swindoll reports that a seminary
student in Chicago faced a forgiveness test. Although he preferred to
work in some kind of ministry
the only job he could find was driving a bus on
Chicago's south side. One day a gang of tough teens got on board and refused to
pay the fare. After a few days of this
the seminarian spotted a policeman on
the corner
stopped the bus
and reported them. The officer made them pay
but
then he got off. When the bus rounded a corner
the gang robbed the seminarian
and beat him severely. He pressed charges and the gang was rounded up. They
were found guilty. But as soon as the jail sentence was given
the young
Christian saw their spiritual need and felt pity for them. So he asked the
judge if he could serve their sentences for them. The gang members and the
judge were dumbfounded. "It's because I forgive you
" he explained.
His request was denied
but he visited the young men in jail and led several of
them to faith in Christ.
Chuck Swindoll.
"The man I ate dinner with
tonight killed my brother." The words
spoken by a stylish woman at a PF
banquet in Seattle
amazed me. She told how John H. had murdered her brother
during a robbery
served 18 years at Walla Walla
then settled into life on a
dairy farm
where she had met him in 1983
20 years after his crime. Compelled
by Christ's command to forgive
Ruth Youngsman had gone to her enemy and
pronounced forgiveness. Then she had taken him to her father's deathbed
prompting reconciliation.
Some wouldn't call this a success
story: John didn't dedicate his life to Christ. But at that PF banquet last
fall
his voice cracked as he said
"Christians are the only people I know
that you can kill their son
and they'll make you a part of their family. I
don't know the Man Upstairs
but He sure is hounding me."
John's story is unfinished; he hasn't
yet accepted Christ. But just as Christ died for us regardless of our actions
or acceptance
so Ruth forgave him without qualification. Even more so
she
became his friend.
Albert H. Quie
President of Prison
Fellowship Ministries
Jubilee
p. 5.
Corrie ten Boom told of not being able
to forget a wrong that had been done to her. She had forgiven the person
but
she kept rehashing the incident and so couldn't sleep. Finally Corrie cried out
to God for help in putting the problem to rest. "His help came in the form
of a kindly Lutheran pastor
" Corrie wrote
"to whom I confessed my
failure after two sleepless weeks." "Up in the church tower
" he
said
nodding out the window
"is a bell which is rung by pulling on a
rope. But you know what? After the sexton lets go of the rope
the bell keeps
on swinging. First ding
then dong. Slower and slower until there's a final
dong and it stops. I believe the same thing is true of forgiveness. When we
forgive
we take our hand off the rope. But if we've been tugging at our
grievances for a long time
we mustn't be surprised if the old angry thoughts
keep coming for a while. They're just the ding-dongs of the old bell slowing
down." "And so it proved to be. There were a few more midnight
reverberations
a couple of dings when the subject came up in my conversations
but the force -- which was my willingness in the matter -- had gone out of
them. They came less and less often and at the last stopped altogether: we can
trust God not only above our emotions
but also above our thoughts."
Corrie ten Boom.
A couple married for 15 years began
having more than usual disagreements. They wanted to make their marriage work
and agreed on an idea the wife had. For one month they planned to drop a slip
in a "Fault" box. The boxes would provide a place to let the other
know about daily irritations. The wife was diligent in her efforts and
approach: "leaving the jelly top off the jar
" "wet towels on
the shower floor
" "dirty socks not in hamper
" on and on until
the end of the month. After dinner
at the end of the month
they exchanged boxes.
The husband reflected on what he had done wrong. Then the wife opened her box
and began reading. They were all the same
the message on each slip was
"I love you!"
Unknown.
Marie de Medicis
the Italian-born
wife of King Henri IV of France
became the regent for their son Louis after
her husband's death in 1610. In later years her relationship with Louis soured
and they lived in a state of ongoing hostility. Marie also felt a deep sense of
betrayal when Cardinal Richelieu
whom she had helped in his rise to political
power
deserted her and went over to her son's side. While on her deathbed
Marie was visited by Fabio Chigi
who was papal nuncio of France. Marie vowed
to forgive all of her enemies
including Cardinal Richelieu. "Madam
"
asked Chigi
"as a mark of reconciliation
will you send him the bracelet
you wear on your arm?" "No
" she replied firmly
"that
would be too much."
True forgiveness is hard to extend
because it demands that people let go of something they value -- not a piece of
jewelry
but pride
perhaps
as sense of justice
or desire for revenge.
Daily Walk
May 27
1992.
Rabbi David A. Nelson likes to tell
the story of two brothers who went to their rabbi to settle a longstanding
feud. The rabbi got the two to reconcile their differences and shake hands. As
they were about to leave
he asked each one to make a wish for the other in
honor of the Jewish New Year. The first brother turned to the other and said
"I wish you what you wish me." At that
the second brother threw up
his hands and said
"See
Rabbi
he's starting up again!"
Rabbi David A. Nelson.
This headline appeared in the Grand
Rapids Press: "Convict Tells of a Torture that Time Can't Change."
The article described a newspaper reporter's interview with a man who had been
convicted of killing his wife. Here's how the writer described the scene:
"He leans forward from his chair. For a moment he says nothing. Finally he
comments
matter-of-factly
'I'll never be the same. I have no illusions about
that. I still have to live with it.'" Since he was being considered for
parole
the prisoner was asked by the reporter if he deserved to be let out. He
responded by saying
"Out? I lost a wife
and I can't replace her. It'll
always be on my mind
because no matter what
I still bear the final responsibility.
There's no amount of time I could do that would change anything. I could do 100
years or 1
000 years; how do you set a number for something like that?"
Grand Rapids Press.
When Narvaez
the Spanish patriot
lay
dying
his father-confessor asked him whether he had forgiven all his enemies.
Narvaez looked astonished and said
"Father
I have no enemies
I have
shot them all."
Unknown.
Jungle Aviation and Radio Service
(JAARS)
the flying department of Wycliffe Bible Translators--had flown
thousands of hours over a 25 year span without one fatal accident before April
7
1972. On that day
a Piper Aztec lost its right engine and crashed in Papua
New Guinea
killing all seven persons aboard. The Aztec had just rolled out of
the Wycliffe maintenance hangar the day before following a 100 hour inspection.
The chief mechanic was stunned when he heard the news of the crash. Reviewing
in his mind each step he had performed in inspecting that right engine
he
suddenly recoiled in horror. He remembered that he had been interrupted while
tightening a fuel line and had never returned to finish the job! That faulty
connection had allowed raw fuel to spray out and catch fire while the Aztec was
in flight. The mechanic's guilt at being responsible for the deaths of his
companions crushed him. For days he did not know what to do. The other
mechanics tried to help him
as did his own family. But when the family of Doug
Hunt
the pilot who was killed in the accident
was preparing to return to
their home in New Zealand
the mechanic knew he had to see them
talk with them
and beg their forgiveness. He could barely get out the words as he sobbed in
their presence. "That hand there
" he said
looking at his right
hand
"took Doug's life." Glennis Hunt
Doug's widow
embraced him.
"Glennis sat by me and held the hand that took her husband's life
"
he later wrote
"and another JAARS pilot sat on my other side with a
demonstration of love
comfort
and forgiveness. That was the most significant
first step in the healing process."
Max Lucado
God Came Near
Multnomah Press
1987
p. 101.
In A Forgiving God in an
Unforgiving World
Ron Lee Davis retells the true story of a priest in the
Philippines
a much- loved man of God who carried the burden of a secret sin he
had committed many years before. He had repented but still had no peace
no
sense of God's forgiveness.
In his parish was a woman who deeply
loved God and who claimed to have visions in which she spoke with Christ and he
with her. The priest
however
was skeptical. To test her he said
"The
next time you speak with Christ
I want you to ask him what sin your priest
committed while he was in seminary." The woman agreed. A few days later
the priest asked.
"Well
did Christ visit you in your dreams?"
"Yes
he did
" she replied.
"And did you ask him what sin I committed in seminary?"
"Yes."
"Well
what did he say?"
"He said
'I don't remember'"
What God forgives
He forgets.
David H. Bolton.
Karl Menninger
the famed
psychiatrist
once said that if he could convince the patients in psychiatric
hospitals that their sins were forgiven
75 percent of them could walk out the
next day!
Today in the Word
March 1989
p. 8.
On the Lord's day a group of
missionaries and believers in New Guinea were gathered together to observe the
Lord's Supper. After one young man sat down
a missionary recognized that a
sudden tremor had passed through the young man's body that indicated he was
under a great nervous strain. Then in a moment all was quiet again. The
missionary whispered
"What was it that troubled you?"
"Ah
" he said
"But the man who just came in killed and ate the
body of my father. And now he has come in to remember the Lord with us. At
first I didn't know whether I could endure it. But it is all right now. He is
washed in the same precious blood." And so together they had Communion. It
is a marvelous thing
the work of the Holy Spirit of God. Does the world know
anything of this?
H.A. Ironside.
In a dream
Martin Luther found
himself being attacked by Satan. The devil unrolled a long scroll containing a
list of Luther's sins
and held it before him. On reaching the end of the
scroll Luther asked the devil
"Is that all?" "No
" came
the reply
and a second scroll was thrust in front of him. Then
after a second
came a third. But now the devil had no more. "You've forgotten
something
" Luther exclaimed triumphantly. "Quickly write on each of
them
'The blood of Jesus Christ God's son cleanses us from all sins.'"
K. Koch
Occult Bondage and
Deliverance
p. 10.
Forgiveness is a funny thing; it warms
the heart and cools the sting.
William A. Ward.
Thomas A. Edison was working on a
crazy contraption called a "light bulb" and it took a whole team of
men 24 straight hours to put just one together. The story goes that when Edison
was finished with one light bulb
he gave it to a young boy helper
who
nervously carried it up the stairs. Step by step he cautiously watched his
hands
obviously frightened of dropping such a priceless piece of work. You've
probably guessed what happened by now; the poor young fellow dropped the bulb
at the top of the stairs. It took the entire team of men twenty-four more hours
to make another bulb. Finally
tired and ready for a break
Edison was ready to
have his bulb carried up the stairs. He gave it to the same young boy who
dropped the first one. That's true forgiveness.
James Newton
Uncommon Friends.
Button in a tourist shop: to err is
human
to forgive is out of the question.
Opaquing fluid is the magical liquid
that covers over your errors
your typos
your unfortunate slip-ups. You brush
on the liquid and start all over again--hopefully this time with no unfortunate
slip-ups. Opaquing fluid is forgiveness
an obliteration of a goof with no
telltale traces that the goof happened at all.
John V Chervokas
How to Keep God
Alive from 9 to 5.
The art of forgiving is a spiritual
grace every Christian should develop. Because this is so difficult to put into
practice
he offers the following suggestions:
1) Begin by assuring yourself that
compared to Christ's suffering you haven't been seriously wronged at all.
2) Recall the many kind deeds that have been shown to you
perhaps even by the
person who has harmed you.
3) List the benefits you have received from the Lord.
4) Thank Him for blessing you with His love and forgiveness each day.
5) Make an honest effort to pray for the one who has injured you.
6) Go even further by looking for an opportunity to help him.
7) If the offense is especially hard to forget
try to erase the memory by
thinking gracious and generous thoughts.
8) Finally
before you fall asleep at night
repeat slowly and thoughtfully
that phrase from the Lord's Prayer
"Forgive us our debts
as we
forgive our debtors."
Roy L. Smith.
Some people try to punish themselves
for their sins. They do not stand on the promises of forgiveness and Christ'
propitiation. "Many years ago
a father and his daughter were walking
through the grass on the Canadian prairie. In the distance
they saw a prairie
fire
and they realized that it would soon engulf them. The father knew there
was only one way of escape: They would quickly begin a fire right where they
were and burn a large patch of grass. When the huge fire drew near
they then
would stand on the section that had already burned. When the flames did
approach them
the girl was terrified but her father assured her
'The flames
can't get to us. We are standing where the fire has already been.'"
Erwin Lutzer
Failure
The Back
Door to Success.
Richard Hoefler's book Will
Daylight Come? includes A homey illustration of how sin enslaves and
forgiveness frees. A little boy visiting his grandparents as given his first
slingshot. He practiced in the woods
but he could never hit his target. As he
came back to Grandma's back yard
he spied her pet duck. On an impulse he took
aim and let fly. The stone hit
and the duck fell dead.
The boy panicked. Desperately he hid
the dead duck in the woodpile
only to look up and see his sister watching.
Sally had seen it all
but she said nothing. After lunch that day
Grandma
said
"Sally
let's wash the dishes." But Sally said
"Johnny
told me he wanted to help in the kitchen today. Didn't you
Johnny?" And
she whispered to him
"Remember the duck! So Johnny did the dishes.
Later Grandpa asked if the children
wanted to go fishing. Grandma said
"I'm sorry
but I need Sally to help
make supper." Sally smiled and said
"That's all taken care of.
Johnny wants to do it." Again she whispered
"Remember the
duck." Johnny stayed while Sally went fishing. After several days of
Johnny doing both his chores and Sally's
finally he couldn't stand it. He
confessed to Grandma that he'd killed the duck. "I know
Johnny
" she
said
giving him a hug. "I was standing at the window and saw the whole
thing. Because I love you
I forgave you. I wondered how long you would let
Sally make a slave of you.
Steven Cole.
Shortly after the turn of the century
Japan invaded
conquered
and occupied Korea. Of all of their oppressors
Japan
was the most ruthless. They overwhelmed the Koreans with a brutality that would
sicken the strongest of stomachs. Their crimes against women and children were
inhuman. Many Koreans live today with the physical and emotional scars from the
Japanese occupation.
One group singled out for concentrated
oppression was the Christians. When the Japanese army overpowered Korea one of
the first things they did was board up the evangelical churches and eject most
foreign missionaries. It has always fascinated me how people fail to learn from
history. Conquering nations have consistently felt that shutting up churches
would shut down Christianity. It didn't work in Rome when the church was
established
and it hasn't worked since. Yet somehow the Japanese thought they
would have a different success record. The conquerors started by refusing to
allow churches to meet and jailing many of the key Christian spokesmen. The
oppression intensified as the Japanese military increased its profile in the
South Pacific. The "Land of the Rising Sum" spread its influence
through a reign of savage brutality. Anguish filled the hearts of the oppressed
-- and kindled hatred deep in their souls. One pastor persistently entreated
his local Japanese police chief for permission to meet for services. His
nagging was finally accommodated
and the police chief offered to unlock his
church ... for one meeting.
It didn't take long for word to
travel. Committed Christians starving for an opportunity for unhindered worship
quickly made their plans. Long before dawn on that promised Sunday
Korean
families throughout a wide area made their way to the church. They passed the
staring eyes of their Japanese captors
but nothing was going to steal their
joy. As they closed the doors behind them they shut out the cares of oppression
and shut in a burning spirit anxious to glorify their Lord.
The Korean church has always had a
reputation as a singing church. Their voices of praise could not be concealed
inside the little wooden frame sanctuary. Song after song rang through the open
windows into the bright Sunday morning. For a handful of peasants listening
nearby
the last two songs this congregation sang seemed suspended in time. It
was during a stanza of "Nearer My God to Thee" that the Japanese police
chief waiting outside gave the orders. The people toward the back of the church
could hear them when they barricaded the doors
but no one realized that they
had doused the church with kerosene until they smelled the smoke. The dried
wooden skin of the small church quickly ignited. Fumes filled the structure as
tongues of flame began to lick the baseboard on the interior walls.
There was an immediate rush for the
windows. But momentary hope recoiled in horror as the men climbing out the
windows came crashing back in -- their bodies ripped by a hail of bullets. The
good pastor knew it was the end. With a calm that comes from confidence
he led
his congregation in a hymn whose words served as a fitting farewell to earth
and a loving salutation to heaven. The first few words were all the prompting
the terrified worshipers needed. With smoke burning their eyes
they instantly
joined as one to sing their hope and leave their legacy. Their song became a
serenade to the horrified and helpless witnesses outside. Their words also
tugged at the hearts of the cruel men who oversaw this flaming execution of the
innocent.
Alas! and did my Savior bleed?
and did my Sovereign die?
Would he devote that sacred head
for such a worm as I?
Just before the roof collapsed they
sang the last verse
their words an eternal testimony to their faith.
But drops of grief can ne'er repay
the debt of love I owe:
Here
Lord
I give myself away
'Tis all that I can do!
At the cross
at the cross
Where I first saw the light
And the burden of my heart rolled away --
It was there by faith I received my sight
And now I am happy all the day.
The strains of music and wails of
children were lost in a roar of flames. The elements that once formed bone and
flesh mixed with the smoke and dissipated into the air. The bodies that once
housed life fused with the charred rubble of a building that once housed a
church. But the souls who left singing finished their chorus in the throne room
of God. Clearing the incinerated remains was the easy part. Erasing the hate
would take decades. For some of the relatives of the victims
this carnage was
too much. Evil had stooped to a new low
and there seemed to be no way to curb
their bitter loathing of the Japanese.
In the decades that followed
that
bitterness was passed on to a new generation. The Japanese
although conquered
remained a hated enemy. The monument the Koreans built at the location of the
fire not only memorialized the people who died
but stood as a mute reminder of
their pain.
Inner rest? How could rest coexist
with a bitterness deep as marrow in the bones? Suffering
of course
is a part
of life. People hurt people. Almost all of us have experienced it at some time.
Maybe you felt it when you came home to find that your spouse had abandoned
you
or when your integrity was destroyed by a series of well-timed lies
or
when your company was bled dry by a partner. It kills you inside. Bitterness
clamps down on your soul like iron shackles.
The Korean people who found it too
hard to forgive could not enjoy the "peace that passes all
understanding." Hatred choked their joy.
It wasn't until 1972 that any hope
came. A group of Japanese pastors traveling through Korea came upon the
memorial. When they read the details of the tragedy and the names of the
spiritual brothers and sisters who had perished
they were overcome with shame.
Their country had sinned
and even though none of them were personally involved
(some were not even born at the time of the tragedy)
they still felt a
national guilt that could not be excused.
They returned to Japan committed to
right a wrong. There was an immediate outpouring of love from their fellow
believers. They raised ten million yen ($25
000). The money was transferred
through proper channels and a beautiful white church building was erected on
the sight of the tragedy. When the dedication service for the new building was
held
a delegation from Japan joined the relatives and special guests. Although
their generosity was acknowledged and their attempts at making peace
appreciated
the memories were still there. Hatred preserves pain. It keeps the
wounds open and the hurts fresh. The Koreans' bitterness had festered for
decades. Christian brothers or not
these Japanese were descendants of a
ruthless enemy.
The speeches were made
the details of
the tragedy recalled
and the names of the dead honored. It was time to bring
the service to a close. Someone in charge of the agenda thought it would be
appropriate to conclude with the same two songs that were sung the day the
church was burned. The song leader began the words to "Nearer My God to
Thee." But something remarkable happened as the voices mingled on the
familiar melody. As the memories of the past mixed with the truth of the song
resistance started to melt. The inspiration that gave hope to a doomed
collection of churchgoers in a past generation gave hope once more. The song
leader closed the service with the hymn "At the Cross."
The normally stoic Japanese could not
contain themselves. The tears that began to fill their eyes during the song
suddenly gushed from deep inside. They turned to their Korean spiritual
relatives and begged them to forgive. The guarded
calloused hearts of the
Koreans were not quick to surrender. But the love of the Japanese believers --
unintimidated by decades of hatred -- tore at the Koreans' emotions.
At the cross
at the cross
Where I first saw the light
And the burden of my heart rolled away ...
One Korean turned toward a Japanese
brother. Then another. And then the floodgates holding back a wave of emotion
let go. The Koreans met their new Japanese friends in the middle. They clung to
each other and wept. Japanese tears of repentance and Korean tears of
forgiveness intermingled to bathe the site of an old nightmare.
Heaven had sent the gift of
reconciliation to a little white church in Korea.
Tim Kimmel
Little House on the
Freeway
pp. 56-61.
When we are wronged in some way
our
natural inclination is to fight back
to get even. Needless to say
this
reaction
though thoroughly human
is almost always in error.
"Forgiveness
" said Epictetus
"is better than revenge
for
forgiveness is the sign of a gentle nature
but revenge is the sign of a savage
nature."
A dramatic example is the experience
of a Hungarian refugee -- to protect his privacy we'll call him Joseph Kudar.
Kudar was a successful young lawyer in Hungary before the uprisings in that
country in 1956. A strong believer in freedom for his country
he fought Soviet
tanks in the streets of Budapest with his friends. When the uprising failed
he
was forced to flee the country.
When Kudar arrived in the U.S. he had
no money
no job
no friends. He was
however
well educated; he spoke and
wrote several languages
including English. For several months he tried to get
a job in a law office
but because of his lack of familiarity with American
law
he received only polite refusals.
Finally
it occurred to him that with
his knowledge of language he might be able to get a job with an import-export
company. He selected one such company and wrote a letter to the owner. Two
weeks later he received an answer
but was hardly prepared for the
vindictiveness of the man's reply. Among other things
it said that even if
they did need someone
they wouldn't hire him because he couldn't even write
good English. Crushed
Kudar's hurt quickly turned to anger. What right did
this rude
arrogant man have to tell him he couldn't write the language! The
man was obviously crude and uneducated -- his letter was chock-full of
grammatical errors!
Kudar sat down and
in the white heat
of anger
wrote a scathing reply
calculated to rip the man to shreds. When
he'd finished
however
as he was reading it over
his anger began to drain
away. Then he remembered the biblical admonition
"A soft answer turneth
away wrath." No
he wouldn't mail the letter. Maybe the man was right.
English was not his native tongue. Maybe he did need further study in it.
Possibly this man had done him a favor by making him realize he did need to
work harder on perfecting his English.
Kudar tore up the letter and wrote
another. This time he apologized for the previous letter
explained his
situation
and thanked the man for pointing out his need for further study. Two
days later he received a phone call inviting him to New York for an interview.
A week later he went to work for them as a correspondent. Later
Joseph Kudar
became vice president and executive officer of the company
destined to succeed
the man he had hated and sought revenge against for a fleeting moment -- and
then resisted.
Bits & Pieces
March 31
1994
pp.
12-15.
The hospital was unusually quiet that
bleak January evening
quiet and still like the air before a storm. I stood in
the nurses' station on the 7th floor and glanced at the clock. It was 9 p.m. I
threw a stethoscope around my neck and headed for room 712
last room on the
hall. Room 712 had a new patient. Mr. Williams. A man all alone. A man
strangely silent about his family.
As I entered the room
Mr. Williams
looked up eagerly
but dropped his eyes when he saw it was only me
his nurse.
I pressed the stethoscope over his chest and listened. Strong
slow
even
beating. Just what I wanted to hear. There seemed little indication he had
suffered a slight heart attack a few hours earlier.
He looked up from his starched white
bed. "Nurse
would you--" He hesitated
tears filling his eyes. Once
before he had started to ask me a question
but had changed his mind. I touched
his hand
waiting. He brushed away a tear. "Would you call my daughter? Tell
her I've had a heart attack. A slight one. You see
I live alone and she is the
only family I have." His respiration suddenly speeded up. I turned his
nasal oxygen up to eight liters a minute. "Of course I'll call her."
I said
studying his face. He gripped the sheets and pulled himself forward
his face tense with urgency. "Will you call her right away--as soon as you
can?" He was breathing fast--too fast. "I'll call her the very first
thing
" I said
patting his shoulder. I flipped off the light. He closed
his eyes
such young blue eyes in his 50-year-old face. Room 712 was dark
except for a faint night light under the sink. Oxygen gurgled in the green
tubes above his bed. Reluctant to leave
I moved through the shadowy silence to
the window. The panes were cold. Below a foggy mist curled through the hospital
parking lot. "Nurse
" he called
"could you get me a pencil and
paper?" I dug a scrap of yellow paper and a pen from my pocket and set it
on the bedside table.
I walked back to the nurses' station
and sat in a squeaky swivel chair by the phone. Mr. Williams daughter was
listed on his chart as the next of kin. I got her number from information and
dialed. Her soft voice answered. "Janie
this is Sue Kidd
a registered
nurse at the hospital. I'm calling about your father. He was admitted tonight
with a slight heart attack and--" "No!" she screamed into the
phone
startling me. "He's not dying is he?" "His condition is
stable at the moment
" I said
trying hard to sound convincing. Silence. I
bit my lip. "You must not let him die!" she said. Her voice was so
utterly compelling that my hand trembled on the phone. "He is getting the
very best care." "But you don't understand
" she pleaded.
"My daddy and I haven't spoken in almost a year. We had a terrible
argument on my 21st birthday
over my boyfriend. I ran out of the house. I--I
haven't been back. All these months I've wanted to go to him for forgiveness.
The last thing I said to him was
'I hate you.'"
Her voice cracked and I heard her
heave great agonizing sobs. I sat
listening
tears burning my eyes. A father
and a daughter
so lost to each other. Then I was thinking of my father
many
miles away. It has been so long since I had said
"I love you."
As Janie struggled to control her
tears
I breathed a prayer. "Please
God
let this daughter find
forgiveness." "I'm coming. Now! I'll be there in 30 minutes
"
she said. Click. She had hung up. I tried to busy myself with a stack of charts
on the desk. I couldn't concentrate. Room 712. I knew I had to get back to 712.
I hurried down the hall nearly in a run. I opened the door.
Mr. Williams lay unmoving. I reached
for his pulse. There was none.
"Code 99. Room 712. Code 99.
Stat." The alert was shooting through the hospital within seconds after I
called the switchboard through the intercom by the bed. Mr. Williams had had a
cardiac arrest. With lightning speed I leveled the bed and bent over his mouth
breathing air into his lungs. I positioned my hands over his chest and
compressed. One
two
three. I tried to count. At 15 I moved back to his mouth
and breathed as deeply as I could. Where was help? Again I compressed and
breathed. Compressed and breathed. He could not die! "O God
" I
prayed. "His daughter is coming. Don't let it end this way." The door
burst open. Doctors and nurses poured into the room pushing emergency
equipment. A doctor took over the manual compression of the heart. A tube was
inserted through his mouth as an airway. Nurses plunged syringes of medicine
into the intravenous tubing. I connected the heart monitor. Nothing. Not a
beat. My own heart pounded. "God
don't let it end like this. Not in
bitterness and hatred. His daughter is coming. Let her find peace."
"Stand back
" cried a doctor. I handed him the paddles for the
electrical shock to the heart. He placed them on Mr.William's chest. Over and
over we tried. But nothing. No response. Mr. Williams was dead. A nurse
unplugged the oxygen. The gurgling stopped. One by one they left
grim and
silent. How could this happen? How? I stood by his bed
stunned. A cold wind
rattled the window
pelting the panes with snow. Outside--everywhere--seemed a
bed of blackness
cold and dark. How could I face his daughter? When I left the
room
I saw her against the wall by a water fountain. A doctor who had been
inside 712 only moments before
stood at her side
talking to her
gripping her
elbow. Then he moved on
leaving her slumped against the wall. Such pathetic
hurt reflected from her face. Such wounded eyes. She knew. The doctor had told
her that her father was gone.
I took her hand and led her into the
nurses' lounge. We sat on little green stools
neither saying a word. She
stared straight ahead at a pharmaceutical calendar
glass-faced
almost
breakable-looking. "Janie
I'm so sorry
" I said. It was pitifully
inadequate. "I never hated him
you know. I loved him
" she said.
God
please help her
I thought.
Suddenly she whirled toward me.
"I want to see him." My first thought was
Why put yourself through
more pain? Seeing him will only make it worse. But I got up and wrapped my arm
around her. We walked slowly down the corridor to 712. Outside the door I
squeezed her hand
wishing she would change her mind about going inside. She
pushed open the door. We moved to the bed
huddled together
taking small steps
in unison. Janie leaned over the bed and buried her face in the sheets. I tried
not to look at her
at this sad
sad good-bye. I backed against the bedside
table. My hand fell upon a scrap of yellow paper. I picked it up. It read:
My dearest Janie
I forgive you. I
pray you will also forgive me. I know that you love me. I love you too. Daddy
The note was shaking in my hands as I
thrust it toward Janie. She read it once. Then twice. Her tormented face grew
radiant. Peace began to glisten in her eyes. She hugged the scrap of paper to
her breast. "Thank You
God
" I whispered
looking up at the window.
A few crystal stars blinked through the blackness. A snowflake hit the window
and melted away
gone forever. Life seemed as fragile as a snowflake on the
window. But thank You
God
that relationships
sometimes fragile as
snowflakes
can be mended together again--but there is not a moment to spare.
I crept from the room and hurried to
the phone. I would call my father. I would say
"I love you."
Guideposts Magazine
1979.
Forgiveness is hard. Especially in a
marriage tense with past troubles
tormented by fears of rejection and
humiliation
and torn by suspicion and distrust. Forgiveness hurts. Especially
when it must be extended to a husband or wife who doesn't deserve it
who
hasn't earned it
who may misuse it. It hurts to forgive. Forgiveness costs.
Especially in marriage when it means accepting instead of demanding repayment
for the wrong done; where it means releasing the other instead of exacting
revenge; where it means reaching out in love instead of relinquishing
resentments. It costs to forgive...Stated psychologically
forgiveness takes
place when the person who was offended and justly angered by the offender bears
his own anger
and lets the other go free. Anger cannot be ignored
denied
or
forgotten without doing treachery in hidden ways. It must be dealt with
responsibly
honestly
in a decisive act of the will. Either the injured and
justifiably angry person vents his feelings on the other in retaliation (That
is an attempt at achieving justice as accuser
judge
and hangman all in one)
or the injured person may choose to accept his angry feelings
bear the burden
of them personally
find release through confession and prayer and set the
other person free. This is forgiveness.
David Augsburger
Cherishable: Love
and Marriage
pp. 141-144.
There is one eternal principal which
will be valid as long as the world lasts. The principle is -- Forgiveness is a
costly thing. Human forgiveness is costly. A son or a daughter may go wrong; a
father or a mother may forgive; but that forgiveness has brought tears ...
There was a price of a broken heart to pay. Divine forgiveness is costly. God
is love
but God is holiness. God
least of all
can break the great moral laws
on which the universe is built. Sin must have its punishment or the very
structure of life disintegrates. And God alone can pay the terrible price that
is necessary before men can be forgiven. Forgiveness is never a case of saying:
"It's all right; it doesn't matter." Forgiveness is the most costly
thing in the world.
William Barclay in The Letter to
Hebrews.
We trample the blood of the Son of God
if we think we are forgiven because we are sorry for our sins. The only
explanation for the forgiveness of God and for the unfathomable depth of His
forgetting is the death of Jesus Christ. Our repentance is merely the outcome
of our personal realization of the atonement which He has worked out for us. It
does not matter who or what we are; there is absolute reinstatement into God by
the death of Jesus Christ and by no other way
not because Jesus Christ pleads
but because He died. It is not earned
but accepted. All the pleading which
deliberately refuses to recognize the Cross is of no avail; it is battering at
a door other than the one that Jesus has opened. Our Lord does not pretend we
are all right when we are all wrong. The atonement is a propitiation whereby
God
through the death of Jesus
makes an unholy man holy.
Oswald Chambers.
If our greatest need had been
information
God would have sent us an educator; If our greatest need had been
technology
God would have sent us a scientist; If our greatest need had been
money
God would have sent us an economist; If our greatest need had been
pleasure
God would have sent us an entertainer; But our greatest need was
forgiveness
so God sent us a Savior.
Unknown.
To forgive like thee
blessed Son of
God! I take this as the law of my life. Thou who hast given the command
givest
also the power. Thou who hadst love enough to forgive me
wilt also fill me
with love and teach me to forgive others. Thou who dist give me the first
blessings
in the joy of having my sins forgiven
wilt surly give me the second
blessing
and deeper joy of forgiving others as thou hast forgiven me. Oh
fill
me with the faith in the power of thy love in me
to make me like Thyself
to
enable me to forgive the seventy times seven
and so to love and bless all
around me.
O My Jesus
Thy example is my law: I
must be like Thee. And Thy example is Mt gospel too. I can be as thou art. Thou
art at once my law and my life. What Thou demandest of me by Thy example
Thou
workest in me by Thy life. I shall forgive like Thee.
Lord
only lead me deeper into my
dependence on Thee
into all sufficiency of Thy grace and the blessed keeping
which comes from Thy indwelling. Then shall I believe and prove the
all-prevailing power of love. I shall forgive even as Christ has forgiven me.
Amen.
Andrew Murray.
O Lord
remember not only the men and
woman of good will
but also those of ill will. But do not remember all of the
suffering they have inflicted upon us: Instead remember the fruits we have
borne because of this suffering
our fellowship
our loyalty to one another
our humility
our courage
our generosity
the greatness of heart that has
grown from this trouble. When our persecutors come to be judged by you
let all
of these fruits that we have borne be their forgiveness.
Found in the clothing of a dead child
at Ravensbruck consentration camp.
Wilt Thou forgive that sin which I
have won
Others to sin? and made my sin their door?
Wilt Thou forgive that sin which I did shun
A year or two
but wallowed in a score?
When Thou hast done
Thou hast not done
For I have more.
I have a sin of fear
that when I have
spun
My last thread
I shall perish on the shore;
Swear by Thy self
that at my death Thy Son
Shall shine as he shines now and heretofore;
And
having done that
Thou hast done
I fear no more.
John Donne
1623.
A Sunday School teacher had just
concluded her lesson and wanted to make sure she had made her point. She said
"Can anyone tell me what you must do before you can obtain forgiveness of
sin?" There was a short pause and then
from the back of the room
a small
boy spoke up. "Sin
" he said.
Bits & Pieces
May
1991.
Clara Barton
founder of the American
Red Cross
was reminded one day of a vicious deed that someone had done to her
years before. But she acted as if she had never even heard of the incident.
"Don't you remember it?" her friend asked. "No
" came
Barton's reply
"I distinctly remember forgetting it."
Luis Palau
Experiencing God's
Forgiveness
Multnomah Press
1985.
General Oglethorpe once said to John
Wesley
"I never forgive and I never forget." To which Wesley
replied
"Then
Sir
I hope you never sin."
Unknown.