Most are familiar with the Guinness World Records book, which sells over a million books a year around the globe. Of course, it's known for the over 40,000 records held worldwide. The book is filled with incredible achievements, fun facts, and unique images everyone can enjoy. Some records are mindboggling, whereas others are just plain stupid! Plain stupid like The Most Slaps to One's Face in One Minute. A ridiculous feat that leads to our Wonderfully Weird Command "Forgive Offenders."
Jesus said, "If you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins (Mark 11:25).” When you refuse to forgive, it is like persistently slapping yourself in the face, which causes unnecessary pain and is foolish. It's ridiculous because it causes needless anxiety and suffering, resulting in self-harm like someone who cuts themselves. And many Christians are in the running for breaking the world's record of not forgiving themselves or others in the shortest time. In the name of Jesus, won't you learn to forgive and stop hurting yourself?
It is natural not to forgive when someone offends you (don't forget you're someone), especially if someone continues to offend. However, God's Way goes beyond our natural bents of hurting people. As Christ has forgiven us, we are to forgive ourselves and others (see Ephesians 4:32). If we don't forgive people, we have not allowed God's truth and grace to touch us to bear fruit in our lives; in turn, being like "The Cursed Fig Tree" doomed never to produce good fruit in our life (Mark 11:12-25, Matthew 21:18-22, Luke 13:6-9).
To stop hurting ourselves, and to grow properly, and to be healed of a hurtful and doomed life, we must cancel the pain and the damage caused by ourselves and others. If we do not, we imprison ourselves for the one who hurts us. Forgiveness frees us from that broken relationship and allows God's trait of forgiveness to heal us. Forgiveness will stop you from slapping yourself in the spiritual face and end the bitterness and resentment consuming your soul. Without forgiveness, you will forever be connected to the unnecessary misery of self-harm and foolish ways of living. Choose to forgive!
There are many world records in the Guinness World Records book, but the most foolish one has to be the record set by Amit Pandey from New Delhi, India, established on March 29, 2015, who slapped himself 789 times in the face in one minute. Silly, foolish, and just plain stupid. But then again, I guess it's no more ridiculous than a Christian refusing to practice God's methods and not learning how to forgive where they spiritually are slapping themselves often for no good reason.
Today, I encourage all to be consistent with The Wonderfully Weird Command, "Forgive Offenders," to be a person who goes after setting the world record of forgiveness where God's reality is always helpful and delightful.
With a forgiving heart,