There are times, when I can be rather thin skinned… my feelings are easily hurt. And then, I tend to either harbor a grudge, or, lash out… regretting my harsh words later. The following passage, written by Joseph F. Girzone in “Joshua And The Children” really struck a chord with me. It reads:
"What Jesus was trying to do was not to issue an impossible commandment, but to offer the key to true inner peace. He came to bring peace to troubled souls and to show people how to live in a way that would not only lead them to God, but help them find a meaning to life that made sense. He was deeply concerned about people’s inability to find peace. His secret, which he lived himself, was in forgiveness, a forgiveness so complete that it never even allowed itself to take offense. Always try to understand why people say and do the things they do, the inner anguish that gives rise to those things, and then it is hard to take offense. Indeed, you can even pity them. You may reach out and be a brother and sister to those people, never despairing of trying to heal their troubled, tortured souls. Jesus himself lived that way. He never took offense, and his last words were 'Father, forgive them, they know not what they have done.'" – Joseph F. Girzone “Joshua and the Children” Chapter 30 p. 182
After reading this passage, I was so moved. I am intent on trying as hard as I can to try and do this… to follow the example Jesus set for us. If only all of mankind could find the where with all to do the same, the world would be a far better place.
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