“And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses” (Mark 11:25–26).
She told lies about you. Half-truths were scattered all over school. He beat you at the contest unfairly. She is the one who started this fight. It is so unfair.
People are going to disappoint you. People are going to be unkind. Life is not fair. You cannot control how others respond and react. What you can control is how you react and respond. Knowing that God has forgiven you should motivate you to forgive others.
From what have you been forgiven? Lying? Unkind words? Rebellious attitudes? Wrong thoughts? If you are a child of God, He has completely forgiven you. Wow, this is huge! When we think about our daily sins against a Holy God, it is mind blowing.
God forgives. He doesn’t have to forgive, but He does because He loves us so much.
My response:
» When someone is unkind, says something not true, or is just plain mean, will I forgive him?
» Will I forgive even if that person never asks for forgiveness?