During a recent Servant Leadership conference, the speaker chose to end the conference with a teaching about forgiving others. Why would he do that? Because when we are serving alongside one another, we are likely to grate on each other. The book of Proverbs refers to it as a sharpening process: “As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.”
As we serve together, times of friction occur and when that happens, we can sometimes pick up an offense. What you do with that offense is up to you, friend, but holding on to an offense is like putting yourself in a prison. And you are the only one who has the key to freedom.
Each one of us is a work in progress.
I am reminded of the story of an old sculptor. One day, someone pointed out a marble lion and asked the sculptor how he could sculpt such a beautiful thing from the slab he started with. The sculptor said, “That’s easy. I just chip away the bits that don’t look like a lion.” That is what God is doing with us while we serve alongside one another. Be thankful. You can be conformed to the image of Christ. In that process, the person that really grates on your nerves… well… God is using them to help you. Let us be quick to forgive. God can forgive each one of us of a debt we could never pay. Let us be quick to show that same grace and mercy to others. I know, it can be hard, but you know the key to forgiving others? Pray for them the way that you pray for yourself.
Life Lesson: Forgive
Without forgiving, you can never experience the fullness of life God has in store for you.
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David McGee is the founder of Cross The Bridge Ministries as well as a pastor, teacher and author. He may be contacted using the form here.
It could start with fatigue, fever, weakness, distraction, depression. You don’t really know what exactly the problem is, but you just know that something’s not working right inside. Chaos occurs when your body decides to attack itself in an autoimmune disorder. Your body parts aren’t acting in unity.
Let’s be honest, relationships are tough. Whether it’s your family or a friendship, every relationship takes time and effort in order to work. The same is true for the Church. It made up of people of different backgrounds, personalities and experiences. We each bring something unique to the table, and then we are commanded to love each other. How does that work? Won’t our differences cause arguments and division? They can, unless we all start from the same point – Jesus Christ.
Dee’s family openly aired their disagreements. Jerome’s family did their best to avoid conflict. When they got married, you can imagine how that worked out.
