What Are The Parameters Of Forgiveness?

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arunangelo

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Some of them are as follows:
Do we have resentment or hold grudge against our offenders?
Do we pray for those who hurt us?
Do we focus on the hurt our offenders have caused their soul (by hurting us), or do we focus on the hurt we received?
Are we willing to sacrifice our own interest in the process of serving those who have offended us?
 

Adstar

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Some of them are as follows:
Do we have resentment or hold grudge against our offenders?
Do we pray for those who hurt us?
Do we focus on the hurt our offenders have caused their soul (by hurting us), or do we focus on the hurt we received?
Are we willing to sacrifice our own interest in the process of serving those who have offended us?

Forgiveness is the willingness to forgive other people no matter what they have done to us.

And it is also passing all judgement and vengeance for the wrong over to God.



All Praise The Ancient Of Days
 

Martin W.

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This can be a deep and complicated subject but years ago I summarized my viewpoint of forgiveness in the following manner:

=I think forgiveness properly functions best and is intended mostly to be used among Christians. If somebody wrongs us it is a good way to disarm an unpleasant situation.

=To make a mistake and then to be forgiven can be very encouraging for us to try not to make the same mistake again.

=It can be very hard for men to forgive. But Jesus tells us it is the honorable and manly thing to do . With that assurance it helps us to not feel like wimps who do not get even.

=I like forgiveness because the Lord promised to do the same to me. He will also forgive my fellow man. It is the least I can do also.

Some people demand forgiveness. I think that is an error.
Some people continue to repeat mistakes and expect forgiveness. I think that is an error.
Some people confuse forgiveness and forgetting. They are two different things. Forgiveness can be instant. Forgetting takes time.
The intent of forgiveness is to make things better and better for us. If forgiveness does not foster improvements it is a wasted exercise
.

Just a few of my thoughts on this subject.
Martin.
 

WhiteKnuckle

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I've thought alot about forgiveness.

I looked the word up in the dictionary. The definition is simply,,, "To give up the will to punish".

Simple enough. You can't help your feelings and emotions when events happen. If someone harms your family, that doesn't mean you have to hang out or invite them over for dinner. You pray for them, and do nothing to harm them.

There was a radio show on a few months ago talking about forgiveness, and I think I might've read something somewhere about the physcological effects of forgiving.

This is the way it goes,,,,

Forgiving someone isn't letting them off the hook. Everyone is accountable for their actions good or bad. Forgiving is for YOU. Letting the weight lift off of your shoulders. All these pains and demons we carry around with us about some past wrong doing does us far more harm. We're hurt more by the grudge than the offender would be if we retaliated. It all sinks deep down into our hearts and minds. It makes us bitter, resentful, and depressed.

If any of us harbor resentment and refuse to forgive, we carry that around with us and we ultimately become defeatists. We end up seeing the world through sarcastic eyes. We can't see the point of doing something good because we fully expect that everyone sucks and they'll only turn around and hurt someone else. On top of all of that we end up doing bad to others who didn't deserve it and feel vendicated.

So seems to me, that forgiving isn't just for the other person, but for our own health and our own mental clarity and emotional stability. It's a way for us to keep driving on and not getting destroyed by what others do. It's about being free.