Daily Reading: Forgiveness 

My prayer today is “forgive me of my sins, as I have forgiven those who sin against me.” I choose to forgive others because I have received forgiveness. I am not forgiven because I forgive others; I’m forgiven because my loving Heavenly Father is full of mercy and grace. Through His Son Jesus, I am forgiven of my sin once and for all. Having received forgiveness I want to pass it on to others. My desire is to pattern my life after Jesus’ life, to be more like Him. God wants me to forgive others because I am forgiven.  

I recognize that I will never have to forgive another person as much as I have been forgiven by God. God gave His Son Jesus as a sacrifice so that I could be forgiven. The only sacrifice required of me in forgiving others is to  resist my selfish nature and have a willing spirit. My attitude toward others today is one of forgiveness, for I recognize and appreciate the mercy hat I have received. God’s love and forgiveness reaches out to all people and I must do the same. I cannot, I will not refuse to forgive others while asking God to grant my request for forgiveness.  

My prayer today is “forgive me of my sins, as I have forgiven those who sin against me.” As I make this my prayer, the Holy Spirit is helping me to let go of hurts others have caused, to abandon grudges I may have, and to completely and fully forgive. It is impossible for me to do this in my strength alone. While it is not my human nature to forgive, my heart is being changed moment by moment through the Holy Spirit living in me. I am depending on His help and His strength to love and forgive others. 

I refuse to let anyone or anything steal the joy and freedom that God’s forgiveness has given me by living in unforgiveness toward others. I will not allow unforgiveness to rob me of the personal growth God has planned for me regardless of how much I believe I deserve to hold a grudge,  the other person does not deserve forgiveness, or how I have been hurt. My forgiveness toward others is in proportion to how God has forgiven me. I choose to follow His lead and constantly forgive others. And as I do so, I will learn to experience His forgiveness in personal and practical ways. 

My prayer today is “forgive me of my sins, as I have forgiven those who sin against me.”