How to forgive?~ By Fr Varghese Thampan ~

~ How To Forgive ~

One day, a while back, a man, his heart heavy with grief, was walking in the woods

As he thought about his life this day, he knew many things were not right

He thought about those who had lied about him back when he had a job

His thoughts turned to those who had stolen his things and cheated him

He remembered family that had passed on

His mind turned to the illness he had that no one could cure

His very soul was filled with anger, resentment and frustration

Standing there this day, searching for answers he could not find, knowing all else had failed him, he knelt at the base of an old oak tree to seek the one he knew would always be there

And with tears in his eyes, he prayed:
"Lord, You have done wonderful things for me in this life
You have told me to do many things for you, and I happily obeyed

Today, you have told me to forgive
I am sad, Lord, because I cannot

I don't know how
It's not fair Lord

I didn't deserve these wrongs that were done against me and I shouldn't have to forgive

As perfect as your way is Lord, this one thing I cannot do, for I don't know how to forgive

My anger is so deep Lord, I fear I may not hear you, but I pray that you teach me to do this one thing I cannot do - Teach me to Forgive."
As he knelt there in the quiet shade of that old oak tree, he felt something fall onto his shoulder

He opened his eyes

Out of the corner of one eye, he saw something red on his shirt

He could not turn to see what it was because where the oak tree had been was a large square piece of wood in the ground

He raised his head and saw two feet held to the wood with a large spike through them

He raised his head more, and tears came to his eyes as he saw Jesus hanging on a cross

He saw spikes in His hands, a gash in His side, a torn and battered body, deep thorns sunk into His head

Finally he saw the suffering and pain on His precious face

As their eyes met, the man's tears turned to sobbing, and Jesus began to speak
"Have you ever told a lie?" He asked.
The man answered - "yes"

"Have you ever been given too much change and kept it?"
The man answered - "yes, Lord"

And the man sobbed more and more.
"Have you ever taken something from work that wasn't yours?" Jesus asked?
And the man answered - "yes""Have you ever sworn, using my Father's name in vain? "The man, crying now, answered - "yes, Lord "
As Jesus asked many more times, "Have you ever"? The man's crying became uncontrollable, for he could only answer - "yes, Lord"Then Jesus turned His head from one side to the other, and the man felt something fall on his other shoulder

He looked and saw that it was the blood of Jesus
When he looked back up, his eyes met those of Jesus, and there was a look of love the man had never seen or known before

Jesus said, "I didn't deserve this either, but I forgive you"It may be hard to see how you're going to get through something, but when you look back in life, you realize how true this statement is

Read the following line slowly and let it sink in

If God brings you to it - He will bring you through it !

~ By Fr Varghese Thampan ~

"Forgiveness Is The Key To Happiness"