Forgiveness is not Demanding

Forgiveness is not Demanding
I have been listening to Leslie Vernick's own painful story about life with her mother. She described the situation of abuse both verbal and physical that she endured throughout her growing up years. What was amazing to me is that Leslie as an adult Christian never demanded from her mother an apology. Leslie forgave her mother and did not expect/demand any special attention for that, or gift, or recognition. Leslie did not even say I forgive you to her mother... she showed it through her behavior, her act of forgiveness was apparent and Leslie saw in her mother's eyes the grace of her forgiveness.  So many Christians think that by forgiving people we can expect some special attention paid to us in return for forgiving those that have hurt us. The reward that we get should is the grace we see / recognize accepted by and in those who hurt us. This is what we really want; because we know that people who hurt us is because they too were/ have been hurt by someone. By forgiving them for what they have done to us, they are able to forgive themselves and the one who hurt them. It is a snowball of grace. In fact, it begets a whole new life of relationships; in a way... a new world is created. This is the work of Christ Jesus in our life; it is why He came and what He came to do for us.  Amen!