“[You should be] bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. (Colossians 3:13)” I want you to really think on this question: What is the toughest thing you’ve ever had to do? Most people would say it was standing in front of a crowd to make a speech or perform in some way. How about forgiving someone the hurt they caused you? That ugly monster raises its head more often all the time, especially with all the handy access to social media. Why is it that we seem to want to hold onto a hurt, bearing that grudge like a badge of honor? Psychology will tell us that we’re probably trying to make right in our head something that we probably caused in the first place. And let’s be honest here, very few of us relish a plate of crow with a side of humility. But that’s precisely what our scripture today alludes to.

Remember when you were a child all the little silver haired ladies in your church? They always seemed so happy together, working willingly and at a moment’s notice every time an opportunity arose. Not one of them seemed to want to be praised alone or to stand out from the crowd. That’s because they recognized their worth as a part of the body of Christ. Every part had to work well with every other part in order for the entire body to remain productive. Did anyone’s toes ever get stepped on or their feelings hurt? Probably so. After all, these ladies were human beings with all the accompanying frailties and faults. The difference was they could admit to error and apologize. Not only that, but the apology was accepted and that was the end of it. They weren’t just friends, they were sisters in Christ and, as such, felt that doing as Jesus would have them do was more than an obligation, it was a privilege.

Where has that kind of attitude gone? Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow (Hebrews 14:8), so the change has come from us. We must remember that everything we see now is transient - here now, gone in a moment - and we with it! Let’s make sure we examine our motives, determined to make them more like Christ would have us be. If ever we needed a loving, forgiving heart, it is today. After all, we don’t really know someone else’s life until we’ve walked a mile in their shoes. Hitch up those britches, put on the steel toed boots, and be the change this world needs. If you’ve done someone wrong, swallow that pride and say so and apologize. If you’ve been wronged by another yet they won’t apologize, let it go and forgive. Either way, your conscience is clear, you have no regrets, and you can move on about your business knowing you’ve done the right thing and have forgiven “just as the Lord forgave you.”