Forgiveness

I’ve thought about this quite a bit.  Forgiveness is so counter-intuitive.  And hard.  I can feel it in myself when I watch a movie in which bad guys beat the crap out of good guys or strong bad guys abuse weak and helpless good people (or dogs!) and something very fundamental to my nature wants to see and rejoices to see the bad guys get what they deserve.  And in my story, I’m pretty much always a good guy! So you know what that means when someone does me wrong!

But I see that there is more and there is other.  I’ve seen it and am walking forward toward the spot where I got the last glimpse of it.  I get these occasional glimpses of it in scripture, in people, in Buddy the Dog, and in me.  I’m going there.  I’ll get there or die on the way.  In the big picture, I think either of those counts about the same.

 In a sense, some sense, I think unforgiveness ties me to a time, place, person, emotion, situation, in the past and keeps me from ever moving on.  From ever moving on at all!  Even though I think I’ve moved on.  Still tied to that X in my past.  Forgiving cuts the tie.  If it’s been a long time, then there’s a lot of catching up to do to be where I could/need/want to be.  But the freedom to move forward is immediate and accelerated! I think.  But then what do I know!?!

I know the present moment is the right time for whatever is the next right thing.

Another note from my journey,

Jim Stephens – Pilgrim