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by Dr. Joe McKeever
I was a young pastor and too green to be picked. But this one I got right.
When Dorothy, a member of our church who had been hospitalized for ulcers, told me she knew God had forgiven her but she was unable to forgive herself, I said, "So you have higher standards than God, is that right?"
She reacted in shock. "Brother Joe, how can you say such a thing?"
I said, "It's exactly what you are saying. Oh sure, God can forgive me because this is what He does. But my standards are higher than His and I can't let myself off the hook that easily."
She said, "What do you recommend?"
"That you start believing the Lord. If He says your sins are gone, that they're underneath the blood of Christ and buried in the deepest sea and separated from you as far as the east is from the west, that you accept that they are gone. Forgive yourself, put the sin behind you, and get on with your life."
One year later, she wrote me. "It was this time last year I was in the hospital and you told me to forgive myself since the Lord had. It was exactly what I needed to hear. I've not had one more day of trouble with ulcers since."
See Also:
Forgive and Forget
Jesus was a man of intense action. He was active in defending the innocence of others. He preached to turn the other cheek when we are attacked individually. He taught to forgive your enemies.Forgive Others As God Has Forgiven You
Forgiving others for deep hurts seems to be one of the hardest things a human being can do. In fact -- very few are successful in forgiving. Yet, in the Bible God commands us to forgive. Is God overly demanding, or...?Forgiveness, Confidence, and Other Spiritual Tools
There have been a lot of things I've learned throughout the 30 weeks of this amazing Spiritual Study program that it is difficult to know where to start. The first things that impressed me regarding the classes was that there now were a way to express what I had been experiencing.
Suffering | General Sermons | Lectionary Sermons | Spiritual/Moral Articles | Malankara World Journal | Malankara World Library
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