Romans 12:20 “If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in doing so, you will heap coals of fire on his head.”

DAILY READING John 15:1-16:4; 2 Chronicles 23; Psalm 80

Years after Hutu extremists killed about 1 million Tutsis in a devastating genocide, the Rwandan nation has embarked on the path of healing, mostly due to the willingness of its people to forgive and forge ahead.

A CNN documentary sometime ago, focused on the story of Mukantabana, a woman who lost her family in the genocide but who has reconciled with her family’s killers and moved on with her life. Mukantabana was only one of the many people in Rwanda who suffered unbelievable terror from their neighbours during the 100-day slaughter in Rwanda when neighbours killed each other along the tribal divide. The Hutus killed the Tutsis, while the extremist government through vile radio broadcasts urged them on.

In her own case, Mukantabana’s husband and five children were hacked to death by marauding Hutu militias. Most painful to her was that among her family’s killers was a man named Jean-Bosco Bizimana, who was her neighbor and husband to her friend, Mukanyndwi. After the war, Jean-Bosco Bizimana spent seven years in jail for his crime. And then he went before a tribal gathering, part of the reconciliation process, to ask for forgiveness. Yet, for Mukantabana  that was not enough to account for the loss of her family. For 4 years, Mukantabana did not speak to her neighbors, Mukanyndwi’s and her husband. But being a Christian who prays a lot, she knew she had to forgive. Though it was difficult, she eventually opened her heart and reconciled with Jean-Bosco Bizimana and his wife.

As at the time of the CNN report, Mukantabana spends days weaving baskets with her friend Mukanyndwi, and often shares lunch with her and her husband. As difficult and as it impossible as it seemed, by God’s grace she has learned to let go of the past and embrace the future.

Ephesians 4:32 encourages us to be tender hearted, not adamant, ready to forgive even as God has forgiven us. Learning to forgive is one of the hardest, but yet most important lessons one must learn in life. As Christians, forgiveness is the basis of our faith. We learn to forgive because we are instructed by God to do so.

Matthew 5:23-24 says, “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.” We also need to be forgiven ourselves. We are not perfect people and we often make mistakes. Everyone has offended God at one time or the other. Despite this, He did not cast us away but allowed us to confess our sins and return to Him.

Jesus says clearly, offenses will come. No matter who you are, the one guarantee you have about life is that you will be offended at one time or the other. We must therefore always remember that it does not matter why someone has chosen to hurt us. What really matters is that we recognize that forgiveness is a necessity.

The truth is that unforgiveness is life-destroying. It is the root of many terminal illnesses and in medical books it is listed as a disease. Forgiveness has less to do with the guilty person’s reaction to it. It’s about obeying God’s instruction to forgive. It is also a decision not to allow yourself to be victimized twice by giving the pain room to continue to operate in your life and affect you. Forgiveness liberates your heart from the anger and pain. It means you have moved on with your life and no longer continually victimized by rehearsing that issue or incident. The forgiving process means letting go and leaving all judgment to God.

Romans 12:20 says, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in doing so, you will heap coals of fire on his head.” God’s instruction is for us to love our enemies and leave the judgment to Him. No matter where you are in life, or what has been done to you, God’s grace is available to help you put it all behind you. Jesus is able to wipe the slate clean and bring restoration. He is able to heal, make you whole and cause His peace to flow like a river through your heart.

PRAYER:

Lord, wherever there is still any root of bitterness or anger in my life, please uproot it and fill my heart rather with Your peace and joy always in Jesus’ name.

QUOTE:

Your attitude always determines your altitude in life.