Forgiveness of others, and ourselves.

...... forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us,
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

Forgiveness is hard. Hard to offer. Sometimes hard to receive. There are two sides to forgiveness. The first is from the point of view of the insulted, hurt or damaged person. We want to hold on to the idea that the other person deserves to suffer because they have made us suffer. We want justice. We want our turn to 'win.' But forgiveness is giving up these feelings. Forgiveness is giving in to the idea that we don't need revenge our compensation. Forgiveness is coming to an understanding of both sides of the situation and being able to let go, not necessarily forget, but being able to put the event behind us.

The other side is seeking forgiveness. It is when we have done something wrong or hurt someone and realize our mistakes. We can seek forgiveness, but forgiveness is only easy from God, because God continually offers it. Forgiveness from others may not come easily, may take time to be offered, or may never be offered. I have an experience where even though I can see I made a mistake, and I have sought to apologize and seek forgiveness, it has never been received or offered. We can't make others forgive. We can only pray and hope that someday our sorrow and apologies for our actions will be received. We can hope. We can pray. I have lost contact with the persons in my situation. I am not sure if I sought contact they would ever accept any apology still. So I continue to pray, that one day, we can put the events behind us, and move on to new ground. 

I am sure we all have these situations. Lost friends. Family without contact. Relationships that have died. Continue to pray for these people. If forgiveness does not come in this lifetime, perhaps when we are with the Father, His forgiveness will bear give life to our forgiveness.