• Print COPIES of the hymn, prayers and stories below to read aloud. Ask participants to take turns reading the prayers and inspirational thoughts and stories.
• Click on the note and download the music to Our Father Who Art in Heaven .
• Click HERE for a large-print copy of A Conversation with God - a conversation about the Lord's Prayer.

Introduction

Wikipedia defines forgiveness as the "mental, emotional and/or spiritual process of ceasing to feel resentment or anger against another person for a perceived offense, difference or mistake, or ceasing to demand punishment or restitution."

The act of forgiveness is, in itself, a priceless gift we give ourselves. When we are able to forgive our enemies, or life's injustices, we free ourselves to move on to a better place of peace and well-being. Forgiving those who have tried to hurt or damage us does not mean condoning what was done. Rather it means not allowing oneself to remain a victim. The ability to forgive and to be grateful for all that you are and all that you have accomplished is something no one can ever take away.

In learning how to forgive, it's best to start small. The next time you get mad at someone for a trivial offense, practice the art of forgiving. Make a conscious choice to let go of your anger and negative feelings and see how liberating it feels. To genuinely forgive a serious transgression will take more time and, oftentimes, the help of others. To be able to forgive - not necessarily forget - takes power away from your enemies and allows your energies to be focused on the healing and not the hurt. When you harbor anger at others, it is very difficult to find peace within yourself. What a terrible price to pay! In fact, there is an old Chinese saying that one who pursues revenge should dig two graves, one for the person on whom they seek revenge and the other for himself.

Part of forgiveness is the ability to reserve judgment and blame. Continually blaming others for what they have done gives them enormous power over you. Better to be able to acknowledge the terrible thing that has happened and move forward as best you can. In that way, through forgiveness, you take back the power from those who have inflicted the hurt. In the words of Lewis B. Smedes, "To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you."

Opening Hymn

Our Father Who Art in Heaven
 ~ by Paul Field and Stephen Deal

Our Father who are in heaven
Hallowed be Thy name
Thy kingdom come
Thy will be done on earth as in heaven

Give us today our daily bread
And forgive our sins
As we forgive each one of those
Who sins against us

And lead us not to the time of trial
But deliver us from evil
For Thine is the kingdom
The power and the glory
Forever
Amen

Opening Prayer

Forgiveness
~ Author Unknown

To forgive
Is not to forget
To forgive
Is really to remember
That nobody is perfect
That each of us stumbles
When we want so much to stay upright
That each of us says things
We wish we had never said
That we can all forget that love
Is more important than being right.

To forgive
Is really to remember
That we are so much more
Than our mistakes
That we are often more kind and caring
That accepting another's flaws
Can help us accept our own.

To forgive
Is to remember
That the odds are pretty good that
We might soon need to be forgiven ourselves
That life sometimes gives us more
Than we can handle gracefully.

To forgive
Is to remember
That we have room in our hearts to
Begin again
And again
And again.

Inspirational Thoughts

You are the people of God; He loved you and chose you for His own. So then, you must clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Be tolerant with one another and forgive one another whenever any of you has a complaint against someone else. You must forgive one another just as the Lord has forgiven you.
~ Col 3:12,13 - 12

We must
Think gently,
Speak gently.
Peace is possible.
Be happy with who you are.
Be happy with who others are.
Be happy that we ARE.
Peace is possible.
Role model acceptance.
Love others.
Role model forgiveness.
Encourage others.
Role model tolerance.
Treasure others.
Peace is possible.
Peace is possible.
Peace is possible.

~ Mattie J. T. Stepanek

A teacher once told her students to bring a clear plastic bag and a sack of potatoes to school. For every person they had refused to forgive in their life's experience, they were asked to choose a potato, write on it the name and date and put it in the plastic bag. Some of the bags were quite heavy. The students were then told to carry their bags with them everywhere for one week, putting it beside their bed at night, on the car seat when driving, next to their desk at work.

The hassle of lugging this around with them made it clear what a weight they were carrying spiritually, and how they had to pay attention to it all of the time and not forget and leave it in an embarrassing place. Naturally, the condition of the potatoes deteriorated to a nasty smelly slime. This was a great metaphor for the price we pay for keeping our pain and heavy negativity! Too often we think of forgiveness as a gift to the other person, when it is clearly for ourselves!

~ Author Unknown

Good news or bad news? It depends on how you see things. You can be bitter after being cheated. Or you can choose to move on with your life.

Robert De Vincenzo, the great Argentine golfer, once won a tournament and, after receiving the check and smiling for the cameras, he went to the clubhouse and prepared to leave. Some time later, he walked alone to his car in the parking lot and was approached by a young woman.

She congratulated him on his victory and then told him that her child was seriously ill and near death. She did not know how she could pay the doctor's bills and hospital expenses.

De Vincenzo was touched by her story, and he took out a pen and endorsed his winning check for payment to the woman. "Make some good days for the baby," he said as he pressed the check into her hand.

The next week he was having lunch in a country club when a Professional Golf Association official came to his table. "Some of the boys in the parking lot last week told me you met a young woman there after you won that tournament." De Vincenzo nodded. "Well," said the official, "I have news for you. She's a phony. She has no sick baby. She's not even married. She fleeced you, my friend."

"You mean there is no baby who is dying?" said De Vincenzo.

"That's right," said the official.

"That's the best good news I've heard all week," De Vincenzo said.

~ From Inspiring Quotes and Stories

Closing Prayer

Let your love flow outward through the universe,
To its height, its depth, its broad extent,
A limitless love, without hatred or enmity.
Then as you stand or walk,
Sit or lie down,
As long as you are awake,
Strive for this with a one-pointed mind;
Your life will bring heaven to earth.

~ The Buddha

Closing Thought

 "To err is human, to forgive divine."

~ Alexander Pope

Additional Activity

Click HERE for a large-print copy of A Conversation with God - a conversation about the Lord's Prayer. Read it aloud at the end of the activity. It will get everyone thinking.

Discussion Starters

1. Lead a discussion about the importance of forgiveness - as an individual, as a community, as a nation. Cite some examples of forgiveness in each of these situations.
2. What happens when individuals and nations fail to forgive?
3. Ask members of the group to share their own stories of forgiveness.

Sites to Visit

• Steps to Forgiveness
• Quotes from the Bible about Forgiveness
• Stories of Forgiveness
• Quotes about Forgiveness