Pero teka, eto na naman ako, binabaybay ang isang paksang may kalaliman ang direks'yon. Naku, sens'ya na nga ha. Let's just say, na-inspired lang ako sa sulat ng isang kaibigan ko sa akin, where in it, my friend was expressing 'yong deep concern n'ya sa standpoint ng forgiveness sa mundo (specifically sa buhay-mundo n'ya). Meron kase s'yang hindi matanggap or mapatawad na tao eh...to a point na medyo feeling vindictive pa kaibigan ko; justifying 'yong actions n'ya in the knowledge na kahit nga daw ang Diyos ay may hangganan ang pagpapatawad. Hanggang labinpu't pito nga lang daw to be exact (hmmm).
OK, normally, I wouldn't disclose what was said sa akin in a letter kase I consider it very private and personal (kaya I wouldn't mention any name nor am I going to eleborate sa k'wento ng friend ko. 'Yong sagot ko na lang, pretty much, sa sulat n'ya ang i-sh-share ko), unless lang it's so significant that I think it should be shared sa kung sino man makabasa nito na maaaring feeling the same way as my friend does. So sana makatulong din ito to open your eyes and heart, and from there, tanggalin ang galit sa puso....
It's in fact an interesting subject what my friend raised here; in my friend's opinion: "Forgiving someone defends on the situation and magnitude of his/her guilt." (and this is where it followed:) "I just can't stop being mad @ this person...but hey, even God stops forgiving at a certain extent (up to seventy seven times, it said so in the bible)...what more can you expect from me? I'm only human...." Quite disturbing words, I know...and well, here is my answer to my friend's letter:
Dear friend,
In the bible, it was, in fact, stated that you must love and forgive your enemies or those who have sinned against you. This came about when He was teaching His disciples about forgiveness on special and many occasions, like the ensuing event: "Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, 'Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?' Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times,' " (Mt 18:21-22). That's it, verbatim. But my friend, make no mistake, He only phrased it that way (ten times what someone is willing to bestow forgiveness on his brother) so that we (can easily remember) get the point. You must know, deep in your heart @ the very core, that God didn’t mean this in a literal way. He wasn’t specifying a measurable limitation on forgiveness of sins, but to merely emphasize to forgive as many times as needed, as it should, if someone is truly repenting.... When you think about it, if that’s the case, then where is the truth in 1 Cor 13:1-13 where it says "Love does not keep a record of wrongs"? You know what I mean? Exactly; it’ll be a contradiction, otherwise. Because the truth of the matter is, God’s love (as depicted in 1 Cor. 13:1-13) is unwavering; it never falters; it never fails. So you cannot use the excuse to tell someone, "oh you've sinned seventy seven times already, that’s it, you’re out, no can do, you cannot be forgiven, ever again!"
Moreover, it is also written in the holy bible, that the only time he will not forgive us is if we can’t forgive those who’ve sinned against us. He doesn’t want us to hate anyone because it’s not for the benefit of love, for God is love. We’re all here on this planet for something, and that is to learn for love and spiritual growth, so when we die (on our graduation day, as some people call it) we’ve gained so much positive and deep, insightful wisdom.
I have heard, that we must choose to forgive, regardless of the seriousness of the sin against us. It's significantly important to Him as it was stated in Matthew 6:14-15, "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."
Having said that, alam mo, it’s not necessarily right, pero it’s perfectly normal to feel the way that you do sa ________ mo. Like I said earlier, tao ka lang kase, hindi si Cristo (Si Cristo na walang hindi kayang patawarin basta’t alam n’yang taimtim sa taong ‘yon ang pagsisisi.) Katulad ko, nagagalit din ako; actually, masama din ako magalit, dahil tao lang din ako, hindi nga katulad ni Cristo. BUT there's one thing, I get over it--I don’t hold a grudge for a long period of time--kase I just don’t see the point. Biruin mo, magagalit ka, itatanim mo ‘yon sa isipan at puso mo, alam mo ba who’s affected most? That’s right, it’s you. You’re only stressing yourself out, and ‘yong taong kinagagalitan mo, walang nararamdaman ‘yon. He could care less about how you feel (or baka natutuwa pa), pero ikaw naman, you’re so stressed out, which isn’t good talaga for your health (lalo na marami ka nang problemang hinaharap na iba; you simply don’t need an extra load of crap to carry on your shoulder). Kaya in the long run, ikaw lang nagdudusa. So why give them the satisfaction in any way? Just take it easy. H’wag mong masyadong dibdibin s’ya o sino mang katulad n’ya; hayaan mo na lang. Tandaan mo, hindi natutulog ang D’yos, pagpapalain ka n'ya. Sabi pa nga diba, "Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the land."
BTW, I’m saying all this hindi para magdunung-dunungan (jut like most people, isa lang din ako sa maraming tanong sa buhay, lalo na sa relihiyon, kung kaya’t mahilig din magbasa ng mga librong pang spiritual) kundi para ipaalam din sa’yo that it’s OK if you cannot accept pa _________ but at least (and God will understand it more kung), h’wag ka na lang magtatanim ng galit sa kanya o kanino man. Learn to let go; you don’t realize this but it’s holding you back. It’s extra added turmoil lang sa buhay mo ‘yon; a negative vibe that attracts negativity din sa buhay mo. You said what you had to say to _________ noon; you got your message across. Tama na ‘yon. Hayaan mo na lang sila. Basta ikaw, isipin mo kung ano ang mas makakabuti para sa’yo, sa emotional and mental health, not to mention sa physical na din. Alam mo bang dito sa America, #1 killer ang stress? Totoo ‘yan, maniwala ka.
And forgiveness, my friend, is a state of the heart; it's powerful and it heals....
forgiveness
Note: Am sharing this with you, because, let’s face it, we all can learn from each other naman talaga eh, and walang masama kung tayo’y magpalitanan ng point of view or give a glimpse ika nga sa perspective ng bawat isa o ng iba, para kung may na missed or na overlooked tayo, well then, we are given the chance to examine ‘yon (mga) bagay that was (were) brought to our attention, and draw our conclusion from there, that can only help strengthen our beliefs. So thank you for letting me voice my opinion! Muahhuggz and labs! Stay well! TTYL!
