Once again it is that time of the year when we remember our war veterans with a deep sense of gratitude and appreciation for their sacrificial role in allowing us to live in a peaceful country. Thank you.
In thinking about war, I believe it would be fair to say that hatred toward others plays a big part in fighting wars. Then, as I thought about warfare, I also thought about hatred that is displayed to individuals that have made us angry.
The following are some quotes that relate to this subject:
"Hate is a prolonged form of suicide."
"I shall allow no man to belittle my soul by making me hate him."
"Contempt is a kind of gangrene, which if it seizes one part of a character corrupts all the rest."
I read a remarkable account of two commanders who were responsible for the attack on Pearl Harbour and the bombing of Hiroshima. In the recent past, these two men met face to face and embraced each other in love and forgiveness. God's forgiveness to us gives us the desire and power to forgive others. Didn't Jesus teach us to pray asking God's forgiveness for our debts in proportion to the way we forgive other theirs? Oh how liberating it is to experience the forgiveness of our own sins and then offer that to those who have wronged us.
Pastor John Giesbrecht
