Midweek Faith Life
How God Forgives
August 28, 2019
Su Podraza-Nagle, LUT
Fantastic morning to you all, and a shout out to those who are watching via video or reading this in an email! Isn’t Technology wonderful! We are grateful you chose to enter this sacred space.
We are going to ponder Chapter 12, from Discover the Power Within You, by Eric Butterworth.
So, getting right to it, I’ll ask a question which may raise some eyebrows, How does God forgive?
Let’s start with a Unity Principle:
1. God is absolute good, everywhere present. There is only one Power, one Presence, God.
And in order to make sure we are on rock solid ground-
The Revealing Word, states, “God is Principle. God is the underlying, unchangeable Truth. God is that which all love springs.”
The Apostle Paul in Acts 17:28 told a group in Athens, “In him (God) we live and move and have our being…….
How then, does this Principle, this force from which all love springs and we move and have our being, Forgive?
Things that make you go mmmm (this is the ponder part) Let’s think about this while I start my example. Here’s the disclaimer-Don’t try this at home. (wrap dental floss around finger tight)
As a side note, this example is in the book. But a rubber band was used instead. I really liked the thought of doing it live and in person………
Butterworth makes the statement that, “You are not punished so much for your sins as by them. This is also a quiet teaching throughout the Gospels.
I am wrapping the lower part of my finger in dental floss to cut off a certain amount blood flow to the rest of my top part of my finger.
This is an example of “miss the mark or having sinned.
When we, in full bloom of our humanness, to do something out of character or when we fail to express the divine attributes of who we truly are- Life, love, intelligence, wisdom and other God attributes,
We cut ourselves off from Principle. We have separated ourselves from that Divine flow. It hasn’t gone anywhere, God is still right where we are but we have turned a blind eye to our divinity.
We become similar to what the top part of my finger looks like. Living in lack, cut off from circulation, a little pained, perhaps going numb. Occasionally we may even turn a reddish color out of embarrassment.
The rest of my body doesn’t rebel, punishing the hand for this lack of blood flow to my finger, it quietly waits until I come back to my senses and remove the string. (do so now) Blood flow is now restored.
God operates the same way. Divine Law works the same way. It quietly waits for us to come back to our senses; our Christ consciousness, to remember and realize our divinity.
Therefore, to answer the question, no God does not forgive because God as Principle is always in and through all. God as wisdom, love and life has nothing to forgive. Divine Principle knows nothing of sin. Remember, God is absolute Good.
The circulation in my finger has returned to normal without me begging for forgiveness.
So where then does this forgiveness come in?
When we rise up in consciousness and forgive ourselves. When we take that first step and say, I am sorry, please forgive me.
How many times have we missed the mark within ourselves What have you been thinking about yourself this past week?
How many times have we chastised ourselves this week for mistakes we may have made? And, how long did you verbally, internally beat yourself up?
When this happens, we don’t feel very good about ourselves, sometimes we even depress ourselves over thinking a situation and this is where being punished “BY” our sins happens.
We subconsciously cut ourselves off from the divine love, that flows in and through our being.
Butterworth states, God is love and he can only love you when you love. If you want forgiveness, express forgiveness. X2
Forgive yourself of your error thinking, come back to your Christ self and join the Divine flow of love.
He says that the act of forgiveness constitutes a mental bath- letting go of something that can only poison us from within.
Forgive yourself. Forgive others. Yes, others. It is often said that what we feel is a transgression in others is a reflection of something we have an opportunity to clear up within ourselves. Sometimes, the lessons we learn from others are the most deep rooted and unnoticed misconceptions we have hidden in our subconsciousness.
How many times? All the time. Remember, Jesus said, 70 x7. To infinity and beyond!
How to start?
By saying these few simple words
I am sorry. Please forgive me. I love you. Thank you.
These 4 statements were taken from the Ho’oponopono (ho-op-on-op-ono) ritual of forgiveness.
Repeat these words mowing the lawn, driving out and about running errands, watching TV, and during your daily routine in front of the bathroom mirror.
Forgiveness starts with us. God can do no more for us that he can do through us.
I am sorry, Please forgive me, I love you, thank you.
Really see, feel, and think the words.
Take them into meditation and into your consciousness as we sing into
Meditation…………
Blessings on the Path,
With gratitude to Su Podraza-Nagle!