Thursday,
August 10, 2023
Today’s post is a
message of hope written by Anna Murdock.
Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!” Matthew 18:21-22
I saw an older man
dressed in torn and dirty clothes.
He was in need of a shave
and surely a hot shower
would have felt good to him.
This man, walking along my route,
was mumbling to himself
and counting his fingers –
touching each finger to his thumb;
first the
right hand -
one, two,
three, four …
then his left
hand -
one, two,
three, four …
then back to
his right hand -
one, two,
three, four.
And so it went,
on and on
and on and on.
The counting seemed
to never end …
from right
hand to left,
from finger to
finger
to finger to
finger.
What was so important
to this man of the streets?
What words were needing
to come out and be spoken?
Was he just “another one of those”
who mumbled quietly
as they walked along
the roads of our lives?
As I continued my drive to work,
weary from the day before,
angry from two days before,
feeling very alone
from the week so far,
I too began to mumble
and count the ways
to weariness,
to anger,
to aloneness.
How many times
am I to forgive
(both myself and others)?
From right hand to left,
from left hand to right,
and back to the right hand
again…
from finger to
finger
to finger to
finger …
the counting
seems
to never end.
How many times and ways
are the words “Be not afraid”
whispered, written,
shouted to
all who fear …
(and
don’t we all fear)?
From right hand to left,
from left hand to right,
and back to the right hand
again…
from finger to
finger
to finger to
finger …
the counting
seems
to never end.
And what about God’s Love?
How many times is this Love
seen, felt,
whispered,
promised,
given, and received?
From right hand to left,
from left hand to right,
and back to the right hand
again…
from finger to
finger
to finger to
finger …
the counting
seems
to never end.
If this man is “one of those”,
who mumble and count,
then I am one as well …
one of those
who cannot fathom
such forgiveness,
such assurance,
such Love ...
for it is all
NEVER-ENDING.
For You Today
Our last word today
is how my friend Anna introduced this image…of us…
Jesus says, "Seventy-seven times. It is never-ending...this
forgiveness." May we see no end to
forgiveness, no end to God's assurance, and no end to the Great Love that binds
us together. May the One who is without
limits send us out to share this 'never-ending' good news with others. This is the community of faith that we are
called to be.
You chew on that as you
hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!
There are about 2,600 devotional
posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.
Title Image:
©2011 Anna Murdock original work
Images without citation are in public domain. Unless noted, Scripture quoted from NLT©
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