Hope in Forgiveness

I came across this quote from Miroslav Volf recently, and its challenged me to think and act! Read it slowly or perhaps a few times as I did.

"Forgiveness is the boundary between exclusion and embrace. It heals the wounds that the power-acts of exclusion have inflicted and breaks down the dividing wall of hostility. Yet it leaves a distance between people, an empty space of neutrality, that allows them either to go their separate ways in what is sometimes called 'peace' or to fall into each other's arms and restore broken communion.

Much more than just the absence of hostility sustained by the absence of contact, peace is communion between former enemies. Beyond offering forgiveness, Christ's passion aims at restoring such communion--even with the enemies who persistently refuse to be reconciled."

The truth is, this forgiveness thing has been on my mind for some time. If I'm honest, I have to admit that I've got a lot of work to do in this department! So I've built a daily habit of "forgive - release - bless". Simply put, I reflect and pray about people, situations, conflicts, etc., and then ask for insight on who I need to fully forgive, then release them and ask God to bless them.

Note that in all these cases, the presenting issues or conflict are over. Where needed, I've asked for forgiveness and in some cases, I've been asked to extend it. What I'm working on now is finishing the job ... doing the remedial work in my own soul so that I can truly "release and bless".

As I've practiced this simple ritual since December 2010, I've been surprised by:

1. The number of people I've needed to "release and bless"
2. The cumulation of negative stuff that needs active attention to dismiss
3. The freedom and "more positive" outlook in my own soul

Recently I was prompted to add one more feature to this soul work. That is, in the case of a very old wound, I needed to call a trusted friend and tell him that I had forgiven, released and blessed someone we both knew. It felt good to bless and be blessed by my friend ... by healing the old wound, not reopening it! 

I wish I could say, "follow these three simple steps and you'll be fixed for life", but I can't. Somehow God cherishes us in our journey away from brokenness, so I imagine that people like you and me still have a lot of work to do in this soul area.

However, I can say that in each situation (or person) that I've released and blessed ... I feel much less blame or self-justification and ton more compassion. I've begun to feel that 'neutral space between', that is peace. This is a huge reward in my own soul.

So join me in changing the world, by finding hope in forgiveness. Try the ritual of "forgive - release - bless" for a week and see what happens in your own soul.