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Day 157, or June the 6th.

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The Benefits of a Forgiving Heart.

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Today's thoughts are rooted in Psalm 32, verse 5.

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Then I acknowledged my sin to you, and did not cover up my iniquity.

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I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord, and you forgave the guilt of my

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sin.

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Now the big picture surrounding this verse.

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There are several Psalms by David that are called Maskely Psalms, and Psalm 32 is one

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of them.

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These are designed to be read and re-read, and pondered over.

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They are Psalms that we would benefit from meditating over.

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Psalm 32 is all about benefiting from forgiveness, so the act of forgiveness was obviously a

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very important part of David's life, and must be an essential part of ours, too, when

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we recall the words of the Lord Jesus on the cross.

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Father, forgive them.

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And now today's action step.

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Forgiving can be so difficult.

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David had much to confess throughout his life, but his formula, found in Psalm 32, worked

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every time.

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He stopped pretending he hadn't sinned, and then he told God that he agreed with him that

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he had indeed sinned.

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The result was forgiveness.

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It cost him nothing in material terms, but it freed him up to live life to the full.

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Having received free forgiveness from God, too many people are then tied down because

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they are unwilling to forgive others.

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Perhaps the best-known portion of Scripture, the Lord's Prayer, sums it up best.

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Forgive us our sins as we have forgiven those who sin against us.

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This is so clear that I doubt even a lawyer or solicitor could find an escape clause.

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Every time we pray this prayer, we are condemning ourselves to being unforgiven by God unless

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we have forgiven others.

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Of course, some things are so hurtful that forgiveness is virtually impossible.

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But remember, your forgiveness depends on it, and that is usually the spur I need to

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forgive.

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Having forgiven someone doesn't mean you then have to like them.

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Of course, we must love them, but they don't have to be our best friend.