Matthew 6:12 ~ Blot it Out

Matthew 6:12 ~ Blot it OutMatthew 6:12 ~ Blot it Out Oct 28, '10 5:54 AM
by Vicky for everyone

Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. Matt. 6:12

We say we "forgive", harbor no ill will nor hold a grudge against those who have hurt us in our past. Do we really, completely and totally? Have we wiped that slate clean like God does for us? We can earnestly think that we do, but then perhaps we are only fooling self and still feel the rub about some people.
I know there are people that can make us cringe just to think of them. Maybe in our heart we are at peace. It is as though we have disassociated with the ill feelings that were once attached to certain persons. Still, we choose to not be near some people that have hurt us in the past. Some seem not to have changed and it's difficult to be near those that grind salt in our wounds. Does that mean we have not forgiven?
I read about a woman who claimed (for years) to have forgiven her husband for pains caused. But decades later the pain rose up like a roaring lion, only to reveal to her that she had not forgiven at all, but masked the pain. So how do we know, truly know, that we've cleaned the slate?
We can but seek God and pray. In fear that if in deep seated thoughts there is unforgiveness for anyone that God might reveal to us and cleanse us. We must pursue this often to ascertain that we can be forgiven. As each day we ask God to show us that which we say or do that is not in His will that we might repent, so too must we seek to repent for unacknowledged discomfort with other humans.
God's promise is if we forgive, He also will forgive. We must forgive if we hope to be forgiven. When we desire God's mercy we must show mercy. Christ came to earth to receive the pain of forgiveness so that we could be reconciled with God and with one another.
Father, help us to heartily pursue forgiveness of others. As we seek You and Your will for our lives may we remember to ask that You reveal to us that which we have not forgiven so that we might receive all that You have for us. Keep us from the poison of bitterness and resentment that places walls between us. When we pursue You, Lord, may we push all the rest behind us that is not of Your will. ~ In Jesus name, Amen