MSN Home  |  My MSN  |  Hotmail
Sign in to Windows Live ID Web Search:   
go to MSNGroups 
Free Forum Hosting
 

Important Announcement Important Announcement
The MSN Groups service will close in February 2009. You can move your group to Multiply, MSN’s partner for online groups. Learn More
Child Loss -- Greiving with the family[email protected] 
  
What's New
  
  Welcome  
  MIGRATION MESSAGE  
  HAPPY 4TH OF JULY  
  MEMORIAL DAY  
  HAPPY THANKSGIVING!  
  MERRY CHRISTMAS!  
  Meet our Managers  
  Guest Book  
  Child Loss Rules  
  Child Loss Family Site Questionaire  
  Our Sister Site  
  All Message Boards  
  General  
  Share Your Loss  
  Prayer Requests  
  This Weeks Topic  
  "What can I say"  
  Poems/Memories  
  ♥.·*•*·.♥.Welcome.♥.·*•*·.♥  
  SECTION FOR KIDS N TEENS/SIBLINGS  
  General  
  ♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥  
  SUPPORT LETTERS  
  Child Loss   
  ♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥  
  Letter to Heaven  
  Note From Heaven  
  Inspiration  
  Game Room  
  Member's Birthday & Anniversary List  
  Memory Candles  
  Memorial Wall Index  
  Memorial Wall  
  *~ The Afterloss Credo ~*  
  Healthy & Unhealthy Grief  
  ♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥  
  I Am Not Gone---Movie  
  ♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥  
  Recommended Reading List  
  What Is Grief?  
  How To Help A Grieving Friend  
  A Father's Grief Reactions  
  Death From A Broken Heart?  
  OUR ANGELS MEMORIAL WEBSITES  
  Pictures  
  Links  
  Artists & Links  
  Link to World Wide Time Table  
  ♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥  
  HEALTH & FITNESS  
  ♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥  
  Household Hints  
  ♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥  
  Backgrounds & Tags to use on message boards  
  ♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥.·*•*·.♥  
  ANGER & The Grieving Process  
  
  
  Tools  
 
This Weeks Topic : Forgiveness
Choose another message board
View All Messages
Prev Discussion  Prev Message  Next Message       
Reply
 Message 1 of 1 in Discussion 
From: MomOf4  (Original Message)Sent: 8/4/2007 8:24 PM

What Is Forgiveness?

Whatever the relationship, forgiveness is a truly

healing gift for the people involved.

The power of true forgiveness cannot be

overstated.

Forgiveness is, at the same time, a pure, supernatural giving: the receiver doesn't deserve it; the giver wants nothing for it. It's not a thanksgiving, because that's the return of one goodness for another. It's not a purchasing price, not even the price of marital pece, becaue that is hoping to buy one goodness with another. Forgiveness is not a good work which expects some reward in the end, because that motive focusus upon the giver, while this kind of giving must focus completely upon the receiver, the one receiving the gift, the one who sinned. The forgiver cannot say, "Because I have given something to ou, now you must give something to me." That's no gift at all.

Rather, forgiveness is giving love when there is no reason to love and no guarantee that love will be returned. The person is simply not lovable right now! Forgiveness is repaying evil with kindness, doing all the things that love requires--even when you don't feel the love; for you can do love also in the desert days when you don't feel loving.

Only when a pure, unexpected, unreasonable, and underserved gift-giving appears in the relationship does newness enter in and healing begin. This is grace. Only when the person has heardhis sin, so that he might anticipate, under the law, some retribution, but receives instead the gestures of love--only then can he begin to change and grow in the same humility which you has shown him. Finally, gift-giving is the greatest sacrifice of all, for it is the complete "giving away" of one's self.

Walter Wangerin Jr., As For Me And My House (1987)