The Forgiving Prayer
For those carrying hurt or causing it.
https://deepspirituality.com/wp-content/uploads/1990/12/PlayAI_The_Forgiving_Prayer.m4a
Jesus, while he was dying on the cross, uttered these words about those who were killing him:
“Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”
Luke 23:34 NLT
Jesus possessed an exceptional relationship with God that produced extraordinary faith expressed through this act of forgiveness. Faith in God creates the capacity to forgive. It is therefore unsurprising that as the world dismisses God, it becomes a more unforgiving place. Paul described this godless and unforgiving world in this way:
“…undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful.”
Romans 1:31 NKJV
This leaves us with two questions: What type of world do we want to live in? And what type of people will we be—forgiving or unforgiving?
Praying the forgiving prayer requires awareness that we have personal sins for which we need forgiveness. Paul explains that this is a universal truth:
This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”—and I am the worst of them all. But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners.
1 Timothy 1:15-16 NLT
Why don’t we always have this awareness of our need for forgiveness? Sometimes we’re so focused on others’ sins we can’t see our own (Matthew 7:3-5). Other times, we use denial and self-flattery to avoid facing our sin (Psalm 36:2). Either way, we miss out on the forgiveness that could be ours.
I understood that I needed forgiveness to become a Christian. But it wasn’t until after baptism, when I sinned in new ways and felt the shame of failing as a believer, that I discovered my need for daily forgiveness. I remember being convicted by Jesus’s words about a woman whose understanding of forgiveness unlocked her capacity to love:
“Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”
Luke 7:47 NIV
Years after becoming a Christian, I finally got to a point where I saw my deep need for forgiveness every day, not just on the day I decided to follow Jesus. I needed freedom from guilt, shame, failure, embarrassment—from feeling like God couldn’t possibly bless me.
If you feel these things, let Jesus’s words—”Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing”—purchase your forgiveness and freedom from these dark emotions meant to keep you imprisoned to the past. Like Will Ferrell’s character in the movie Spirited, we need to wrestle with our feelings of being unredeemable, then let Jesus teach us we are not only forgivable but worthy of love and capable of giving it:
Am I forever unredeemable?
“Unredeemable,” from Spirited (2022)
Can I ever overcome all the wrongs I’m running from?…
And do I deserve to find
The kind of love that I could lean on everyday?…
We have to believe inside the worst of us
There is some decency there.
You know that you can achieve something miraculous if you’d only dare.
The forgiving prayer allows us to experience daily forgiveness from God through Jesus Christ, unlocking our capacity to love. And it is this love that will change the world.
Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.
1 Peter 4:8 NLT
So let’s decide: Do we want to live in a forgiving or unforgiving world? That choice will determine whether we seek forgiveness from God daily or carry the psychic weight of unforgiveness. Join me in choosing to pray the forgiving prayer.
Perception — Change how you see
“God, help me perceive both my own sin and others’ sins with the same honesty—not minimizing what they did, but not elevating myself above them either. Help me see that unforgiveness keeps me chained to the past while forgiveness sets me free for the future. Open my eyes to see myself as someone deeply in need of daily forgiveness, not just someone wronged by others.”
Process — Change how you think
“God, interrupt the cycle of resentment shaping my thoughts. Rewrite the mental processes where I replay the injury, recalculate the offense, and determine what’s owed to me. Transform the way I process hurt by accepting its reality, while at the same time refusing to let it define my reality. Help me think about forgiveness the way you do: not as excusing sin, but as releasing its power over me. Teach me to extend the same forgiveness to others that I have received from you.”
Purpose— Change what you live for
“Show me that when I withhold forgiveness, I’m the one who stays imprisoned. Help me live for love that covers a multitude of sins, both mine and others’.”
Path — Change where you are going
“God, lead me to release what I cannot keep carrying. Give me the courage to name my own sins honestly so I can experience your forgiveness fully. Show me the path of daily confession, daily forgiveness received, daily forgiveness given, and daily freedom to love. Free me from the weight of guilt, shame, embarrassment, and the feeling that I’m unredeemable. Lead me on the path where I believe that I’m not only forgivable, but also worthy of love and capable of giving it.”
