Forgiveness In A Nutshell

The Bible says, Love ye one another... This, anyone can do who really wants to do it... Love means that you wish for the other health, happiness, peace, joy, and all the blessings of life... There is only one prerequisite, and that is sincerity... You are not being magnanimous when you forgive, you are really being selfish, because what you wish for the other, you are actually wishing for yourself... The reason that this is true, is that you are thinking it and you are feeling it... As you think and feel, so you are... For as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he. PROVERBS 23:7; Could anything be simpler than that?

Technique of forgiveness

The following is a simple method, which works wonders in your life as you practice it: Quiet your mind, relax, and let go... Think of God and His love for you, and then affirm (to state in a matter of fact way), “I fully and freely forgive (mention the name of the offender); I release him/her mentally and spiritually... I completely forgive everything connected with the matter in question... I am free, and he/she is free... It is a marvelous feeling... It is my day of general amnesty... I release anybody and everybody who has ever hurt me, and I wish for each and everyone health, happiness, peace, and all the blessings of life... I do this freely, joyously, and lovingly, and whenever I think of the person or persons who hurt me, I say, ‘I have released you, and all the blessings of life are yours...’ I am free and you are free... It is wonderful!”

The great secret of true forgiveness is that once you have forgiven the person, it is unnecessary to repeat the prayer... Whenever the person comes to your mind, or the particular hurt happens to enter your mind, wish the delinquent well, and say, “Peace be unto you.” Do this as often as the thought enters your mind. You will find that after a few days the thought of the person or experience will return less and less often, until it fades into nothingness...

The acid test for forgiveness

There is an acid test for gold... There is also an acid test for forgiveness... If you should hear something wonderful about someone who has wronged you, cheated you, or defrauded you, and you are heated at hearing the good news about this person, the roots of hatred are still in your subconscious mind, playing havoc with you...

Let us suppose you had a painful abscess on your jaw a year ago, and you told me about it... I would casually ask you if you had any pain now... You would automatically say, “Of course not, I have a memory of it but no pain...” That is the whole story... You may have a memory of the incident but no sting or hurt any more... This is the acid test, and you must meet it psychologically and spiritually, otherwise, you are simply deceiving yourself and not practicing the true art of forgiveness...

When man understands the creative law of his own mind, he ceases to blame other people and conditions for making or marring his life... He knows that his own thoughts and feelings create his destiny... Furthermore, he is aware that externals are not the causes and conditioners of his life and his experiences...