“Who is a God like You, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance? You do not stay angry forever, but delight to show mercy.” Micah 7:18. 

I used this verse for my scripture text message one day this week. It generated some conversation with some of the folks who get my daily text. God truly is a very forgiving God. He has forgiven me for some horrible things. Some things that other people have yet to forgive completely. I know that I have made some huge errors in judgment in my life. I know that I have, at times, not made the best of choices and, like others, have tried to justify my bad choices. I am so blessed that God brought me to my knees and then forgave me of those choices. He does not stay angry forever. Again, for that, I am so blessed.

He does forgive so willingly and so easily, and then tosses our sins away and does not remember them again.  Oh my goodness! How blessed we are that this is true! Wouldn’t it be nice if the rest of the world operated that same way. We are not very forgiving people by nature. And we surely aren’t the forgetting type, when it comes to others people’s sins! We like to keep all that stored up, for later use, should it become necessary. 

Someone told me that they could forgive fairly easily, but forgetting is the hard part. Well, the truth is that nowhere in the Bible does it say “forgive and forget.” We are told to forgive. Actually, we are told to forgive 70 times 7 times. So does this mean we should stand there and count up on our fingers and toes until we reach 490 times? Of course not! What I believe this means is that since we are not very good at forgetting what others have done to us, we are supposed to forgive again each time it pops into our brains. Each time we are tempted to rehash the wrong done to us, God wants us to forgive one more time. He wants us to forgive and show mercy. Not just show mercy, but delight in showing mercy, just as He does.

It really makes you feel good to surprise others with a completely sincere forgiving heart. It feels good to show mercy to one that has done you wrong. Especially when the world in which we live seems to operate totally counter to that.

We should walk as people changed by the gift of God’s forgiveness and His infinite mercy. We should show the world by our actions what God has done in our lives. The world is crying out for someone who will forgive, encourage, teach, and show mercy. Will you be that one? It will make a difference!

By: Gina Caswell Kelly