Navigating the Terrain of Forgiveness.

Being a little child many years ago, I found joy in keeping malice and would refuse to play with those who offended me until they apologise. I would even give them an ultimatum of when they should apologise even if I was the one at fault, and if the time elapsed, that would be the end. I saw myself as a special child who should not be the one apologising but they should, and it was something I enjoyed doing back then. I can keep malice for years and it won't bother me.

As I continued to grow up and became more mature than I was at that period, I realised forgiveness should be a part of me, especially knowing how I have come to accept Christ as my Lord and Saviour. The story of Christ taught me the act of forgiveness and reading how dangerous it is not to forgive other people from the powerful word of God, I started to see things I ought to be angry at on normal ground as something not serious. I smile a lot and wouldn't mind whatever you do to me because I have learnt to let go of things done to hurt me so I can have peace. Forgiveness is not hard for me again because I easily forget things done to me in the bad way.

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Not forgiving another takes peace far from you as you would only be feeling the pain and hurt anytime you see the person or even think of them and it deprives you of happiness. Forgiveness is like releasing yourself from chains you have been bound with and being free. This is something I have come to enjoy today that I don't even get worried over whatsoever has been done to me.

Forgiveness is a hard thing to do especially when you have been betrayed by someone you ever trusted or when you have been stabbed so hard by a close friend or relative which you didn't expect they'd do such to you. But one thing is very sure, once you can understand that human beings are imperfect and that we can make mistakes, you won't be worried as you would have seen it coming so as to know how to handle it when it shows up.

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There are many times I have had to forgive people who did not even bother apologising for the wrong they did to me because of my peace and comfort. I don't want to dwell on the past because I have lots of things I am looking forward to achieving than to allow an occupied thought of who has wronged me to take the chance and start flooding my mind with negative thoughts and revenge. I do not believe in "an eye for an eye" thing because, in the end, it would only affect my well-being as I won't be able to think forward to the next action in my life. Taking revenge itself is harmful and could lead to death in the end.

I am also a human being with feelings and I tend to get angry when something is being done to me, but the act to forgive quickly has helped neutralise whatever hatred that might creep in later. Peace is all that I seek for and for a Christian like me, I have been taught to forgive as many times as possible which is stated in the Bible that the number of times to forgive is seventy times seven times. Now imagine taking your time to forgive in such numbers of times, how do you have time to hate on someone except you don't have better things to do, only then would you keep on hating other people even at the slightest wrongdoing towards you.

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Some will even say "Over my dead body would I forgive such a person" I wonder how people could be so mean and wicked to go to such a great extent, and one thing I have come to understand is that these individuals have not truly known what absolute peace entails. When your heart is free from hatred and unforgiveness, there would be space for peace to flow in while enjoying your life in the best way. I can never compromise my peace for anything at all and it is the reason I value so much of it and my happiness as I make sure to let go of past hurt, and forgive as quickly as possible because no one knows what will happen next.

You will never forgive yourself if you fail to forgive someone when you have the time. Death comes unannounced and settling your misunderstandings while there is still chance is what matters. God detest an unforgiving heart. When you are one who reads the Lord's prayer that says, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us", if you do not practice what you read or try to receive forgiveness when you haven't forgiven others, it does not amount to anything in your life. God forgives when we forgive others.

Though, forgiveness is hard to practice, still it is something we must do to attain a substantial level of peace and happiness, and also, a channel through which our prayers would be answered.

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