Asking for Forgiveness

In a movie about Beethoven, there’s a scene in which he becomes furious at his landlady. Later, he apologizes. It is a touching moment in which you can see that the woman was almost moved to tears. Beethoven then gives her two tickets to see his new symphony performed for the first time. She responds to him, “Mr. Beethoven, you’re not half bad when you have a civil tongue in your head.”

It is hard to say, “I’m sorry.” It is hard to ask for forgiveness. But admitting fault and asking for forgiveness are the first step towards reconciliation; they are the first steps toward repairing damage done to a relationship. If our pride will not allow us to apologize, our relationships cannot be sustained, and over the course of time they will only deteriorate.

In 2 Corinthians 5, the apostle Paul wrote:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation…

From time to time, we all fall short. We all make mistakes. May we be the kind of people who are able to apologize, and the kind of people who work for reconciliation.

Let us pray: Loving God, being human there are times when we miss the mark. We make mistakes. We mess up. Give us the courage, the humility and the strength to admit our shortcomings and the wisdom to start over differently. We ask in Jesus name. Amen.