Comments on: Forgive, but Remember Graciously. With the Wisdom of a Serpent & Gentleness of a Dove

By: Anita Mathias

Anita Mathias — Tue, 27 May 2014 19:34:17 +0000

In reply to Gail Daniels. I will pray too that you have wisdom and peace!

By: Anita Mathias

Anita Mathias — Tue, 27 May 2014 19:33:15 +0000

“The point of forgiving is to heal ourselves of our wounds and release others from our grievances. HOwever, just because we have forgiven, it doesn’t mean the other person has changed at all, and we’d be foolish to put ourselves back in a place of vulnerability, especially when there’s nothing to say they’ve changed.”
Exactly. As a newish Christian, I used to struggle to forgive and love people who really did not care for me, or have my best interests in mind. Now I think I was trying to climb Mount Everest when really I should have practised little hikes–“loving” my husband, who did actually love, was challenge enough!

By: Bev Murrill

Bev Murrill — Tue, 27 May 2014 09:38:11 +0000

I love what you’ve written, Anita. It’s been my experience that ‘forgive and forget’ is not possible. If we forgot everything we forgave, we’d have huge holes in our memories – amnesia. The point of forgiving is to heal ourselves of our wounds and release others from our grievances. HOwever, just because we have forgiven, it doesn’t mean the other person has changed at all, and we’d be foolish to put ourselves back in a place of vulnerability, especially when there’s nothing to say they’ve changed.

There are some people I’ve forgiven fully and completely but I am not interested in developing a relationship with them again… that would be foolishness.

Very perceptive post.

By: Gail Daniels

Gail Daniels — Tue, 27 May 2014 08:56:40 +0000

Thanks for today’s post. Getting ready to go into a situation where that wise advice applies, and prayed this morning that God would help me deal with it in a Christian manner, as my natural defensiveness often takes over first before I think.
I shall remember the scorpion and the frog and try to hold myself quietly aside from any situations that do arise, having learnt who has the knife ready for my back from previous experience.
This is not a situation among my Christian brothers and sisters, I must add.

By: Anita Mathias

Anita Mathias — Mon, 26 May 2014 15:05:18 +0000

In reply to mari howard.

Hi Mari, Writers’ weekend at Scargill?
Moi, trying to write with two lively teenagers at home for the Bank Holiday–very distracting, alas!

By: mari howard

mari howard — Mon, 26 May 2014 09:48:18 +0000

Yes, very wise: serpents good to learn from, in terms of caution … Good thoughts here.

Off to writers’ weekend in the North: see that we shall take the rain along with us!