Grace in Asking for Forgiveness
Last week, I told you about Larece, aka, Lasco.
He had suggested that I write about temptation. Lasco is single, and if I am honest, somewhere in my heart, I was judging him. I didn’t say it in a harsh way, and he didn’t take offense. In fact, he had no hard feelings toward me at all. But judgment doesn’t stop being judgment just because the other person isn’t hurt by it.
I remember saying that maybe this week, I should write about forgiveness.
And the truth is, I said it because I knew I needed it.
But all week long, I had nothing to write.
Nothing.
I sat down more than once, staring at the screen, waiting for words that never came. Even today, I was ready to move on to something else: brainstorm. Then out of nowhere, Tricia sent me a scripture. That’s not something we normally do.
And before I ignore it like I had been ignoring this topic, the words spoke directly to me:
“This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: ‘In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength.’” — Book of Isaiah 30:15
Repentance.
Rest.
Quietness.
Trust.
And obedience.
Repentance requires honesty. It requires us to admit what we would rather overlook. Lasco did not demand an apology from me. He did not confront me. But that does not remove my responsibility before God.
How many times have we done things and never asked for forgiveness, yet we expect it to be granted anyway?
We assume grace will cover what we never confessed.
We want mercy, but we don’t want to humble ourselves.
And yet, when Jesus taught us how to pray, He made forgiveness inseparable from our own willingness to give it:
“Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” — Gospel of Matthew 6:12
Those words are not casual. They are a mirror.
We are asking God to forgive us in the same measure that we forgive others.
Not in the measure of our intentions.
Not in the measure of our excuses.
But in the measure of our obedience.
Forgiveness is not just something we receive.
It is something we must release.
The Sack of Stones
There is an old story back home in Jamaica about a man who walked everywhere carrying a heavy sack on his back.
Inside the sack were stones.
Each stone represented something someone had done to him.
One for betrayal.
One for harsh words.
One for abandonment.
One for disrespect.
He carried them everywhere he went. Over time, the sack became so heavy that his back bent and his steps slowed.
One day, an old woman saw him struggling and asked why he carried it.
He said, “These are the things people did to me. I cannot forget.”
She told him, “You are not carrying the stones. The stones are carrying you.”
She instructed him to put the sack down.
One by one, he dropped the stones.
And with each stone he released, he stood a little straighter.
He breathed a little easier.
He realized the sack was never protecting him.
It was imprisoning him.
Sometimes, the stones we carry are not what others did to us.
Sometimes, the stones are what we did to others.
And repentance is how we put them down.
This Week’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.
Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
Lord,
Forgive us for the times we expected forgiveness without repentance.
Forgive us for the times we stayed silent when we should have apologized.
Forgive us for the times we held others to a standard we did not hold ourselves to.
Teach us to repent.
Teach us to rest.
Teach us to trust You enough to be honest.
Help us release every stone we were never meant to carry.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
Grace waits.
In the apology we delay.
In the obedience we avoid.
In the quiet places we hide.
This week, grace waited for me to listen.
Grace doesn’t just forgive; it restores.
It crosses oceans, generations, and pain.
It meets you where you are, but refuses to leave you there.
Grace calls.
Grace corrects.
Grace carries.
And when we finally surrender the stones, we realize it was holding us all along.
Grace was never against you.
It was always reaching for you.
Grace Across Borders: Biblical Lessons and Global Legends 
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