Discovering How to Love: Christ and His Example of Forgiveness

I have a dream. I’m an ordinary white horse but I become this beautiful, black creature. It has wings and it’s unique and wonderful. It’s like a beautiful stallion, but it’s so much more. It’s fantastic. 

I add my black stallion to my canvas. Good apples pelt my black, winged creature. They’re red, delicious apples, not peace stealing crab apples. The red delicious apples bear the names of the fruits of the Spirit from the Book of Galatians. With each “hit” my stallion gets something and lets something go. Hatred is traded for love, fear is given away for peace, and sadness is swapped for joy. I give my black horse wings so it can soar. 

I am becoming the beautiful black creature in my dreams. I had been the ordinary white horse until I chose to begin absorbing all the evil that was sent my way. That’s when I began transforming. I've started to understand who I really am. I'm learning to embrace each “hit” and understanding, more and more, that the chasm between me and my offender is small. For the first time I am giving a little of the love I wish to receive.

Recognizing the chasm between ourselves and our offenders can be our way of being the hands and feet of Christ. When we love those who have hurt us, or might hurt us, we are like Christ and His example of forgiveness. Demonstrating Christ's call to turn the other cheek is trading hatred for love, giving fear away for peace, swapping sadness for joy, and choosing to soar in the most unlikely places. Discovering how to love is not easy because we are called to love people who are hurting: people who are, or once were, just like us. Hurting people hurt others and it's a huge challenge to reach out to them and help them heal. With God's help our story can be about us transforming and giving away a little of the love we wish to receive. Our spiritual story can close the chasm and allow us to become the person God dreams we will be. 

Who I Really Am
Age 38

Begin With Loving Yourself: Christ is Offering You Forgiveness

Write five sentences that describe you well. Use this paragraph to help yourself choose five adjectives that best describe you. List these adjectives in your journal. Do you like who you are? Do you believe you are created in God's image? Ask God for five adjectives that describe you. Does your list match His? Why? Why not?

Now think of someone extremely difficult to love. Choose five adjectives to describe that person and list them in your journal. Ask yourself, "Do you believe that this person is created in God's image?"

Consider some adjectives that describe you (and others) which are negative. Make a list of them in your journal. Do these adjectives describe who God made you and others to be? Are they adjectives that describe someone God made you, or another person, to become? Knowing that Christ is offering your forgiveness, and a way to become more like Him, can help you forgive yourself and others. Loving yourself and others allows your story to be about hope, transformation and forgiveness. It allows your story to reach others with the message of unconditional love. It can become the heart of your spiritual autobiography.

 

Tags For This Journey: how to forgive someone who is mentally ill,Christ forgiveness,Christ offering forgiveness,spiritual autobiography,spiritual memoir

Forgiving Myself And Others: Dancing in the Doghouse