We have all had those days where, while driving along, we are met with trying situations behind the wheel. A few days ago, I was stopped at a light in the right-turn lane, and I was waiting for the green arrow to signal my turn. As the light turned green, I began to let up on the brake and hit the accelerator. I had barely hit the gas when the sound of a horn blared. The driver behind me was impatiently signaling his displeasure with my reflexes, which, by the driver’s reckoning, were insufficient. My surprise turned to anger at the impatience of this individual, and I instantly had stirrings of my own response. Thank goodness I pushed my ‘pause button’ before I acted on that impulse. I forgave this driver in my heart as I completed my turn.
When we feel wronged by others, no matter the situation, it is impossible not to feel hurt. We can feel it; we can think about it. Even so, this week’s scripture passages challenge us to reconcile with others. We are invited to forgive from the heart. It is in the heart where we hold on to grudges, and it is from the heart where we forgive the things that hold us captive. There is a line in the Catechism of the Catholic Church that says, “the heart that offers itself to the Holy Spirit turns injury into compassion and purifies the memory in transforming the hurt into intercession.” The Lord wants us to be prayer warriors–not avenging ones. We need lots of prayer when we are weak. We ask the Lord for the strength and courage to seek a new response to those who hurt us so we can reconcile with them. Jesus shows us, by his sacrifice on the cross, that love is stronger than sin. His words of forgiveness become a living reality.
We are all debtors who are unable to pay back the great debt we owe to God, yet he sent his only son to pay our debt. Jesus wants us to feel renewed and rejuvenated by this fact that our debt is paid, but we are also to do the same for others. We cannot help those who flat-out refuse, but we can plant the seed. We can forgive those who hurt us or our community. Jesus reminds us how it is our duty to lovingly guide those who were led astray back to the path of Christ. It is difficult because our hearts can cause us to exclude those individuals and, in some way, may even want to punish them and retaliate. Think of someone who angered or hurt you in the past. It could be your family member, friend, co-worker, boss, or someone on Facebook or Twitter. Now, pause for a few seconds and take a deep breath in and slowly let it out. Imagine Jesus on the cross, as he provides us with a great example of a heart big enough to forgive all offenses and, in that pause, find peace.
This is our way; this is our struggle; this is our challenge, but thank God we have him on our side to help us along the way of forgiveness and to receive his mercy.
-Deacon Jeff Loeb
