Real Life by Peggi Tustan

Welcome to  Real Life . "Unforgiveness is like drinking poison, then waiting for your enemy to die." – Anonymous  “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Peter boldly asks. Jesus’ answer must have come as a shock, “… not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” In other words, forgive and keep on endlessly forgiving. This doesn’t mean you ignore the offense (see “Taking it Further” below). But, you always forgive.  Certainly, generosity in forgiveness is appreciated (and often expected) when I am the offender. But, what about when I am the offended one? It's not so easy then.  Realizing this, Jesus tells a parable to help us view forgiveness from God’s perspective. The Kingdom of Heaven is like …  The CEO of a major corporation reviews his accounts. He notices an outstanding debt worth millions of dollars. He calls in the business owner responsible for the debt. The man explains, “My business is failing. I

Welcome to Real Life . What’s hidden in my soul? Every once in a while I need to take a peak at what lies beneath the surface. How confident is my faith? How pure are my motives?  _____ A desperate man kneels before Jesus. He pleads, “Lord, have mercy on my son.” His boy suffers from seizures which make him fall into the fire or water and injure himself. The father brought his son to Jesus’ disciples. But, they were not able to heal him.  After hearing of his disciples’ failure, Jesus laments,   “O unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I stay with you?  How long shall I put up with you?  Bring the boy here to me.” Jesus rebukes the demon. The boy is healed – immediately. In private, the disciples ask, “Why couldn't we drive it out?” Jesus responds, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for