Asking For Forgiveness

Asking for Forgiveness

The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.

Romans 8:26

One of my friends, whom I’ll call Joy, understands what the pastor means about praying and asking God to forward your request for forgiveness from someone who has died. An elderly widower in her church, Mr. Smith, began calling Joy a few days after his wife’s funeral. He’d comment on the weather and the newspaper headlines, ask about her day, inquire about the children’s homework—all subjects Joy didn’t want to discuss while she was trying to prepare dinner for her husband and growing family. Finally, one afternoon she asked if he would mind calling later in the evening. He never called again.

Engaged in her busy routine, Joy forgot about Mr. Smith—until he died unexpectedly. At the funeral home, his out-of-state daughter greeted her with a hug.

“Thank you for being so kind to Dad,” she said. “He told me how much it helped him to talk to you. After Mother died, the dinner hour was awful for him since they used to cook together and talk and laugh. You helped him so much.”

Joy gulped down surprise and guilt as she accepted another hug. The next several days were rough as she mentally replayed those phone calls with new understanding. And as she remembered asking Mr. Smith to call later, her guilt deepened. She gave herself pep talks about how busy her family kept her and how inconsiderate Mr. Smith had been to call during her busiest time of the day. But the guilt remained.

Finally one evening, she knelt by her bed and said through tears, “Lord, please tell Mr. Smith I’m sorry. I didn’t realize what those calls meant to him. If I could do it over again, I’d handle everything differently.”

Finally peace arrived, along with a new sensitivity to the grieving people around her. —SANDRA

Lord, this account makes me sad because often I haven’t gotten the full story until it’s too late. Help me to be sensitive to your leading as I respond to others. Help me to see I can make a difference in the lives of hurting people just by taking a moment to listen and let them know I care. I realize I can’t solve everyone’s problems, but I can remind those around me you have not forgotten them.

Virtue is not secure until its practice has become habitual.

—BENJAMIN FRANKLIN (1706–1790), AMERICAN STATESMAN AND PHILOSOPHER