Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
(Psalm 32.1
NRSV)
Two and a half hours later he was led into a building and shoved into a room. They shackled his right arm to a radiator, and then they left. Jerry waited and listened; he was alone. Days passed in a blur of monotony and fear.
Jerry had always thought of Jesus' teaching about forgiveness as incredibly tacky, wimpy, and weak-kneed. Now in his solitary cell, Jerry saw that "the bully with the gun is the wimp. The man who says go ahead and shoot is not." Then the most remarkable thing happened. Jerry prayed for the first time in years. "God, please forgive men like these--like I'm doing now," he prayed, "because they are in part responsible for bringing me to You and Your Son." Jerry Levin learned to forgive his captors. The hostile, bitter men who were holding him had actually done God's work. God had used his imprisonment to get Jerry's attention. After all, he thought, why else would a middle-aged grandfather be sitting in his underwear in a bare room in Lebanon, chained to a wall?
God of love, thank you for forgiving me. Guide in forgiving those in my life who need my forgiveness. Amen.