Pull on the Rope

“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”
-Colossians 3:13-

You may recognize the name ten Boom. As a teenager, I read Corrie ten Boom’s famous autobiography, The Hiding Place. Corrie’s family was instrumental in hiding many Jews in their home during the Nazi invasion of the Netherlands. But eventually she was captured and imprisoned at the Ravensbruck concentration camp, where she was forced to do backbreaking labor. Years later, after the end of the war and her release, she was greeted by one of her prison guards at the end of a public meeting. With the love of Christ deeply rooted in her, she managed to forgive the guard. She noted, however, that sin, even though it is erased by forgiveness, still has repercussions. She compared it to pulling on the rope in a bell tower. When you stop pulling the rope, the bell still keeps ringing for a while. That’s like the momentum of your emotions when you have been wronged. Over time, God can heal the raw wound, but for a while, you must bear the reminder of it.
You’ve probably heard much about God’s forgiveness — how He sent His Son to die on the cross so that we can be forgiven for our sins. We are fervent believers in receiving forgiveness. We are grateful that we have been forgiven.
But many times we have a hard time extending forgiveness to others. A drunk driver crosses the median, slamming into the bus that was carrying your child. Forgive her? Your spouse betrays and deserts you. Forgive her? Your teenage son sneaks off with your car and wrecks it. Your neighbor takes you to court over a property dispute. Forgive them? What they did seems unforgivable. The wrong you’ve suffered is just too great to bear.
But that’s exactly the point of forgiveness. We’re not meant to carry that burden. We’re not meant to live imprisoned by our own desire to right the wrong. Lack of forgiveness is that “bitter root” that “grows up to cause trouble and defile many” (Hebrews 12:15). I’ve seen it, and it’s not pretty; decades of pain and separation because of stubborn unforgiveness. Families torn apart. Adult children who haven’t talked to their fathers in years.
But I’ve also seen the beauty and freedom that come when we forgive. Marriages restored and even strengthened. Families reunited. Broken teenagers overwhelmed by the patient forgiveness of their loving parents. Oh, you may still feel the effects of the original wrong. You might still hear the bell ringing for a while. But the freedom won by forgiveness is worth it. So, go ahead: Give that rope a pull.

Pursuing Today
As you read today’s devotional, what came to mind that was (or is) hard for you to forgive? Are you still nursing any grudges? Read Jesus’ parable about an unforgiving servant in Matthew 18:21-35. Prayerfully consider the next step you need to take to begin the healing process. Write a note. Make a phone call. Walk across the street or into the next room, and forgive just as you have been forgiven.