An Extremely Weighty Burden

November 29

Holding a grudge can become an extremely weighty burden. The longer it is carried, the heavier it becomes. Yet, many of us persist in holding on to things that we perceive as being slights toward us, insults against us or outright harm unleashed at us. It may seem like the only reasonable thing to do, given the situation, but it is not.

When we embrace to ourselves, when we take in, the negative things that come our way, we are encumbering ourselves with the kind of excess baggage that cannot possibly advantage us in any way. It can only drag us down. We must divest ourselves of it—much as a ship in a storm must cast extraneous cargo into the sea.

If we will allow ourselves to do so, we will cover the offenses against us with love, with forgiveness, and in so doing, we will be delivered from their impact. Our doing so has nothing to do with the attitude of the perpetrator of the offense. Whether or not he seeks forgiveness and restoration, we must extend it to him. If he accepts our grace, he, too, is blessed. If not, he elects to remain under the wrong's smothering weight.

Solomon writes in Proverbs 17:9, “He who covers over an offense promotes love, but whoever keeps the matter separates himself from close friends.” The reality is that all of us are guilty at one time or another of saying or doing something that can cause offense to another. We must seek forgiveness at those times just as we must extend forgiveness when we are offended. Friends, true friends, love in spite of offense.