As I sit and watch the rain fall to the ground, and the brilliant green colors emerging all around, I feel a sense of joy as nature’s potency returns in full force. My emotions are mixed, however. I experience sadness over the loss of life in Japan and Alabama that is fresh on my mind. Throw in nationalistic exuberance all around me, over the death of one man, and life is a swirl of emotion.
The reactions in our culture are typically intense, short lived, and can take on major swings in a matter of days. We have been enraged over a federal budget debate and organized labor legislation in two states, heartbroken over losses in Japan, and now jubilant at the death of Osama Bin Laden. Just days before excitement over Bin Laden’s death people were rallying to help those in Alabama. I’m sure we’ll return to that theme when our media tells us to, but I would like to talk about the Bin Laden situation for a moment.
I never realized how much power Osama held over our hearts in the last ten years. Tremendous celebration is not the only reaction to his death, many people are lashing out with incredible anger. This is quite understandable from those who lost a friend or family member, but how many of us have been in bondage to anger and hatred of this man for almost a decade? Below is an illustration of this anger that I copied from one of my friends’ status updates on Facebook:
“It warms my heart knowing the SEALS shot and killed one of Osama’s wives and one of his sons.”
I was stunned when I read these words. Sometimes our intense anger can take us to unhealthy places. As followers of Christ, we recognize that forgiveness of others (even those we consider horrible) is healthy. It allows us to release anger and hatred that can do unknown damage to us. We are called to not only forgive those close to us, but to forgive someone like Osama if he had offended us. Thinking through this situation has caused me to wonder about my own life.
Who else do I need to forgive? I think this is a great opportunity for each of us to consider this question. Who needs forgiveness in your life today?
