Forgetting

"Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." We've read this before. We may have even seen it portrayed on film or in some other medium. So you may have picked up on this little tidbit. Jesus was hanging on the cross when He said it. Think about that for a moment. Blood flowing from the open wounds on His body, gasping for air, after a joke of a trial, He forgave them.
Now let's just remind ourselves of something. By the power of the Holy Spirit, God can cause us to be Christlike, enable us to act and to have the attitudes of Jesus. So a Christian can forgive.
Most of the time we separate forgiveness out like an egg being separated into yoke and white. We forgive... and forget... Or we forgive, but vow never to forget. Or we savor the grudge and nurse the resentment and take our time about the whole thing. And to be fair there are times when it takes a little while to gather our wits about us after we have been wronged. Who did it? What did they do? Why do I feel this way? All that is not sorted out in a moment. So forgiveness sometimes takes time. But then, when we resolve to forgive, we find that our minds don't have a natural shut off switch. So forgetting can take a life time.
But Jesus hung there forgiving. Surely He can help me to look my enemies in the eye and forgive them, with all my heart. And by His power, I might just forget. But if I forgive... do I trust? If I forget, will I get a painful reminder? I stand at the foot of the cross receiving my Lord's forgiveness. Regardless of what comes, I must also extend forgiveness.