Forgiveness, of Ourselves

I just finished watching a movie called Johnny. The main character is a ten year old boy, who is a ward of the state, and dying of leukemia. However, Johnny is special. He has a special heart for God. He loves God so much and is so aware of the forgiveness Christ offers each of us. 
Johnny is unafraid to speak of God to each person he meets, and inform them of God's love for us, and how He always forgives us our sins. 


So often, it is a challenge for us to be able to forgive ourselves and trust in God's love for us. It's easy for us to see our sins and avoid going to confession. It's easy for us to be upset with those who hurt us, and be stubborn, so as not to forgive them whether they apologize or not. Most of all though, I think it's when we have our faults, and we hold onto them, we grasp tight to them, and don't permit the Lord to take our sins, our faults, our hurts, our pains, our mistakes, and heal us. Our God desires to heal us, we need to allow him to enter into our hearts. 


What struck me most in the movie was a line that Johnny says to a mother who was struggling to forgive herself for her past. Johnny told her how God wants to forgive us, he has already forgiven us, we just need to let Him in. And Johnny tells his doctor the same thing - we need to let Jesus in so he can heal us. 


Brothers and sisters, may we allow Jesus to come into our lives. May we be open to receiving the grace and forgiveness He desires to give us! 


Here are some good bible verses for forgiveness, and lastly, I encourage each one of us to make appoint to apologize to others when we make mistakes, forgive ourselves for our own faults, forgive those who hurt, and do our best to strive to love all we meet. 


Psalm 86:4-5 Gladden the soul of your servant, for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.

Psalm 103:8-12 The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.

2 Corinthians 2:5-8 Now if anyone has caused pain, he has caused it not to me, but in some measure—not to put it too severely—to all of you. For such a one, this punishment by the majority is enough, so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. So I beg you to reaffirm your love for him. (attitude: stand ready to forgive)
Ephesians 4:31-32 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.(attitude: loving and forgiving just like God forgave you)