August 22: Insight Post by Karenna Rowenhorst
Weekly Reading: Matthew 18:21-35
Friday Reflection
Forgiveness Reflects God’s Grace: When we forgive, we mirror the grace that God extends to us. Just as the king in the parable forgave the servant’s immense debt, so God forgives our sins. We are called to extend this same grace to others.
Friday Verse
Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Colossians 3:13 (NLT)
Friday Questions
How can I demonstrate God’s grace through forgiveness in my interactions with others? How does forgiving others reflect Christ’s love and mercy?
Friday Insight Post
by Karenna Rowenhorst
Yesterday my computer wasn’t working well. It started opening new windows and programs slowly, and then my e-mail stopped working altogether. I couldn’t send any messages. So, I picked up the phone and called our tech support people. After gaining remote control of my computer, the tech got to work. I watched on the screen, hoping to learn something I could use in the future.
One of the first things he did was perform a “health scan.” Who knew that computers had checkups! I noticed that he uninstalled some programs, rebooted the computer, and told me it should be working much more smoothly now that he removed some unnecessary programs. We tested it and it did! I got an email summary of the work completed after we got off the phone, and one line got my attention: “removed bloatware.” This was new – software and hardware I know, but bloatware? It seems that these unnecessary programs were causing the major slowdown and even making my email inoperable.
When I read the Matthew 18 passage for this week, my thoughts went back to bloatware. God sees my unforgiveness for what it is – a sin that holds me back from living the way God intended. Unforgiveness takes a lot of work to maintain – the mental energy to maintain that state of mind is significant. If we are trying to live our lives while full of unforgiveness, I think we end up operating like my laptop was – slow and unable to open some programs; not able to send clear messages. Unforgiveness takes up a lot of time and space in my heart and makes me miss out on the good things God has for me.
We have to allow the light of God to shine into every corner of our mind to find the places where we get stuck or have extra programs like “resentment,” “bitterness,” “entitlement,” and “unforgiveness” running. If you allowed God to scan your heart and mind today, what kind of programs would He find running?
God gives us clear instructions on how to live and how to treat others:
“30 And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.
31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. 32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.” Ephesians 4:30-32 NLT
If I understand that the way I live should be guided by an operating system written by God, that includes forgiveness, I hope I can dig down to look at my motivations at a heart level. God cares how we live, and He cares that we do it genuinely. He knows what will hold us back and what will help us grow.
In the short term, it may feel really satisfying to hold onto unforgiveness. After all, they did something wrong, and they may have hurt us. But unforgiveness messes with our operating system – slowing it down and making our prayers bounce off the ceiling. We need to allow God to be in charge and focus on letting go. Not that forgiveness equals trusting someone again, because it doesn’t, but forgiveness gets rid of the emotional and spiritual bloat inside our hearts.
Let’s pray today that God will reveal areas of unforgiveness in our hearts and help us have the courage to let them go.
Karenna Rowenhorst, MA
Senior Director of Education
New Hope Church
Lorton, Virginia
www.newhope.org