Friday, August 13, 2010

Forgive Quickly

"The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving..."
Daniel 9:9

"Forgive Quickly." It's been almost two decades since one of our pastors admonished us with those words in our pre-marital class. During those weeks of preparation for marriage with other engaged couples, we received much wise instruction from our pastor through God's Word. Yet those words "Forgive Quickly" have continually reverberated in my heart and mind. This truth has been a healing balm to my heart and in my marriage. And I am thankful my husband forgives me quickly, too.

Withholding forgiveness can be destructive. Our hurt, self-righteousness and pride can build dangerous walls. God's love, mercy and forgiveness flowing through us will protect and strengthen our marriage union and our "cleaving" together. "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh." Genesis 2:24


When I feel an unwillingness to forgive quickly welling up in my heart, I am humbly reminded of the abundant mercy God has shown me in my life. My heart is humbled and I race to show mercy. I do love His mercy. "And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8

In his book "Devotions For A Sacred Marriage", Gary Thomas writes:

"Because we married a sinner, we're going to see some ugly, ugly things. That's why our attitude toward another's sin will determine in large party, the degree of intimacy we can achieve in marriage.

Love mercy. Micah isn't telling us merely to demonstrate mercy or only to practice mercy; he tells us to fall in love with it. The wide, biblical concept of mercy includes forgiveness but also has roots of loyalty. This is a loyalty and forgiveness seasoned with graciousness and kindness -- particularly to those who don't deserve it. It is one of the most beautiful words in the English language and certainly one of the most precious truths in the Christian faith.

What does it mean to fall in love with mercy? It means I am to become mercy's biggest fan. Having received mercy from God, I am to walk in assurance and thankfulness, using my own gift of mercy as the lens through which I view anyone else's sin -- including that of my spouse."

Mercy: Roots of loyalty. Forgiveness seasoned with graciousness and kindness. Precious truth.

My heart is stirring. We are to love mercy. Mercy forgives quickly. Jesus forgives quickly. "Then he said, 'Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.' Jesus answered him, 'I tell you the truth, today you will be with Me in paradise.'" Luke 23:42-43

"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." Ephesians 4:32

Put away unforgivness and pride. Let's take our hands off of our hips, and let's outstretch our hands to our merciful, perfectly loving God. Let's race to show mercy!

Our own forgiveness came at a precious, costly price to our Redeemer. In humility, reverence and awe, may we be quick to forgive. "This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." Matthew 26:28

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Congratulations to Rob & Becky! They will be receiving "Devotions for a Sacred Marriage"! Rob and Becky - the book is on the way to you today!





Sharon

5 comments:

Unknown said...

What a beautifully written post Sharon! I'm sharing it...

Love and blessings,
Jill
Who continues to learn to forgive quickly!

TRUTH SHARER said...

Great post and loved all the scriptures. I pray Daniel 9:4-19 weekly for our country and for Israel but here you have used a portion of it in context with marriage. What a great reminder that forgiveness must span every peramater of life!

Very convicting and encouraging post!.

Choosing JOY, Stephanie

Unknown said...

Hi Stephanie.. Im so glad you came to visit my blog..and thank you for the kind words..
I was telling Caroline, the author of that blog,,that in this non stop crazy world,, we tend to just look right through people as if they dont count..but that just is not true..so that post really touched my heart and i thought i needed to share it..
Thanks again for stopping by.. hope you will come again soon and i will surely be back to visit you..
God Bless.. see ya soon

Kelly said...

Hi Sharon! I love the quote by Gary Thomas, and it can read both directions! Since my husband married a sinner he sees some ugly things, and since I married a sinner I do too! We both need to forgive quickly.

Great post, as usual!!

Warren Baldwin said...

Good post, Sharon, and congratulations to the winners of the book! I'm sure it is a great one. wb