The Church of the Blessed Sacrament in St. Paul shared a reflection from Allison Gingras in their Sept. 13 bulletin about forgiving from a place of sincerity in our hearts.

As followers of Christ, we are called to imitate our Lord and forgive without holding back.

God’s grace, which He freely bestows upon us, is the perfect example of generosity. But while giving is an incredibly important aspect, receiving is the other side of the same issue.

“Gifts need to be utilized in their full designed capacity to reap maximum benefits,” Gingras said in the bulletin. “In the case of mercy, God freely and abundantly offers it to us, but if we do not accept nor if we do not open our hearts to it, the blessings available remain untapped.”

God is so merciful that He forgives us of a debt that we could never pay. We, in turn, must be merciful to those around us who are in a similar situation.

While it can be difficult to let go of the pain and bitterness that someone has wounded us with, God tells us that we are not allowed to look for opportunities to hurt them back.

“Knowing this should stir a Christian heart to pray all the more for the offender, that they be blessed and shown mercy, so to be spared the wrath,” Gingras said. “A perfect and powerful example of our loving our neighbor as ourselves.”

We must see that we can never repay God for His grace bestowed upon us, but we can satisfy His requirement asked of us.

“God is a just God. Desiring this justice for ourselves, coming before Him as grace beggars, seeking the ability to forgive others from our hearts,” Gingras said.

With the grace from God being offered to us, how can we truly hold on to any anger against others?