I heard a preacher talking about forgiveness today. He said forgiveness is not stuffing the hurt inside of us or removing ourselves from the person or situation.
Imagine instead a small church with a steeple with a long rope. You can go to the rope and give it a pull and the bell will ring loudly. You can pull on the rope again and again and the bell will continue ringing. However, If you stop pulling the rope, the bell will ring only a little bit longer and will eventually stop ringing. Forgiveness is when you no longer pull the rope but desire the peace that comes when the bell stops ringing more.
How many people do you know or have known who couldn't stop pulling the rope.
