One day a while back,
a man, his heart heavy
with grief, was
walking
in the woods. As he
thought about his life
this
day, he knew many
things were not right. He
thought about those
who had lied
about him back when he
had
a job.

His thoughts turned to
those who had stolen
his things and cheated
him.
He remembered family
that had passed on.
His
mind turned to the
illness he had that no one
could cure. His very
soul was
filled with anger,
resentment
and frustration.

Standing there this
day, searching for
answers
he could not find,
knowing
all else had failed
him, he knelt at the
base
of an old oak tree to
seek the one he knew
would always be there.
And
with tears in his
eyes, he
prayed:

"Lord - - - You have
done wonderful things
for
me in this life. You
have
told me to do many
things for you, and I
happily obeyed. Today,
you have told me to forgive. I
am sad, Lord, because
I
cannot. I don't know
how. It
is not fair Lord. I
didn't deserve these
wrongs that were done
against me and I shouldn't
have to forgive. As
perfect as
your way is Lord, this
one
thing I cannot do, for
I don't know how to
forgive. My anger is
so deep
Lord, I fear I may not
hear you, but I pray
that you teach me to
do
this one thing I
cannot do - - - Teach
me To
Forgive."

As he knelt there in
the quiet shade of
that
old oak tree, he felt
something
fall onto his
shoulder. He opened
his eyes.
Out of the corner of
one eye, he saw something red
on his shirt. He could
not turn to see what
it was
because where the oak
tree had been was a
large square piece of
wood in the ground. He raised his
head and saw two feet
held to the wood with
a large
spike through them. He
raised his head more,
and tears came to his
eyes as
he saw Jesus hanging
on a cross. He saw
spikes in His hands, a
gash in His
side, a torn and
battered body, deep
thorns
sunk into His head.
Finally he
saw the suffering and
pain on His precious
face. As their eyes
met,
the man's tears turned
to sobbing, and Jesus
began
to speak.

Have you ever told a
lie, he asked?

The man answered - - -
yes Lord.

Have you ever been
given to much change
and
kept it?

The man answered yes
Lord. And the man
sobbed
more and more.

Have you ever taken
something from work
that
wasn't yours, Jesus
asked?

And the man answered
yes Lord.

Have you ever sworn,
using my Father's name
in
vain?

The man, crying now,
answered yes Lord.

As Jesus asked many
more times, "Have you
ever"? The man's
crying
became uncontrollable,
for he could only
answer
yes Lord.

Then Jesus turned His
head from one side to
the other, and the man
felt something fall on
his other shoulder. He
looked and saw that it
was the blood of Jesus.
When he looked back
up, his
eyes met those of
Jesus,
and there was a look
of love the man had
never
seen or known before.

Jesus said, I didn't
deserve this either,
but
I forgive you.

It may be hard to see
how you're going to
get
through something, but
when you look back in
life, you realize how
true
this statement is.

Read the first line
below slowly and let
it
sink in. This is
simple,
and important. Read on
.. This first line is
deep.

If God brings you to
it - - - He will bring
you through it.

Lord I love You and I
need You, come into my
heart, today. For
without You I can do
nothing.

Don't ignore and God
will bless you.
Courtesy Of: PPOPPY2@aol.com