Tonight was relationship building block number 2 – Forgiveness.

Every relationship on the planet will require forgiveness at some point.  The reason is simple – every relationship is comprised of imperfect people, so the relationship is flawed. Forgiveness is essential to our lives.  We crave it to be given to us, but hold on to it when others need it.

Here are the scriptures we used tonight.  Romans 12:17-21, Matthew 6:14-15, John 8:7, and Matthew 18:21-22.  The challenge in Romans 12:20-21 is a difficult one.  We should treat our enemies like we treat those we love.  We are to forgive others when they do wrong to us because we are told to do so.  We were shown mercy and grace by a loving God, and we should show it to others.

Fear and Misconception are the obstacles to forgiveness.  

We fear losing:

• the energy that anger produces
• leveraging
• hope for a better relationship
• power and control

The common misconceptions we have about forgiveness are:

• It is not condoning the behavior
• It is not forgetting what happened
• It is not restoring trust in the person
• It is not agreeing to reconcile
• It is not doing the person a favor
• It is not easy

Read through these scriptures and look over the list of the obstacles.  Let me know what you think.

WG