February 14                                                                                      Mark 2:  1–12

 

 

This passage tells of Jesus’ healing of a paralyzed man.  The religious leaders chastise him when he proclaims the man to be forgiven of his sins.  He then proves to them that he has the authority to give this forgiveness as the Son of Man.  Is part of our Christian lives to have and utilize the authority to give others forgiveness?  Even if we believe it is so, it is certainly a most difficult thing to do.

 

In the world there are many examples of people who have forgiven individuals for massive crimes.  We can recall the Amish school massacre in 2006 and the response of forgiveness that was shown toward the murderer and his family.  I cannot comprehend how they were able to do that.  The people of that community showed, as Jesus taught, that we CAN give forgiveness; the Amish quietly showed that they were “doing what Jesus taught”.

 

As we live our lives on a daily basis, we often have the opportunity to forgive in many ways.  Are we grudge holders?  Do we not listen to certain people?  Are we inflexible in our dealings with others?  I wonder if some of these common practices result from our failure to be more forgiving of others possibly over small things?

 

Prayer:

Help us to see in our lives that we do have the power to forgive others.  In doing so, may we be more open to others in our daily relationships.  Amen.

 

 

 

~ Jim Aldridge