To Forgive or to Fret, That is the Question...

The story below was sent to me by a friend. I don't know its origins. It made me stop and think. So often we forget the good things that others do for us or even take them for granted. However, if someone wrongs us, we are sure to tell everyone we know and never forget it. What a sad way to live our lives. Holding a grudge really only hurts us and those closest to us, seldom the person we are angry at! It also takes a lot of energy that we could be using for good pursuits. I have seen bitterness literally destroy people's lives.

Let's remember Ephesians 4:31-32--Let all bitterness and wrath , and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

Two friends were walking through the desert.

During some point of the journey, they had an
argument; and one friend slapped the other one in the face.

The one who got slapped was hurt,
but without saying anything, wrote in the sand:

‘Today my best friend slapped me in the face.’

They kept on walking, until they found an oasis,
Where they decided to take a bath, the one who
had been slapped got stuck in the mire!
And started drowning, but the friend saved him.
After he recovered from the near drowning,
He wrote on a stone:

'Today my best friend saved my life.’

The friend who had slapped and saved his

best friend asked him, 'After I hurt you,

you wrote in the sand and now,
You write on a stone, why?'

The friend replied 'When someone hurts us we
should write it in sand, where winds of forgiveness
can erase it away. But, when someone does
something good for us, We must engrave it in
stone where no wind can ever erase it.’

'Learn to write your hurts in the sand
and to carve your blessings in stone.’

It might be a good idea to have a notebook where we write our blessings and reread it when we are upset at another person.