"Forgiveness, Do We Need an Apology"

We  desire forgiveness, yet it is often hard for us to grant to others. When we get hurt, we are often offended and we often live in a state of anger and dismay while we wait for the person who hurt us to seek out our forgiveness. When we are faced with a heartfelt apology, forgiveness seems so natural, but what about when there is no apology?  Is an apology a required key to forgiveness?
    
Joseph and his coat of many colors, in Genesis, Old Testament is an example of forgiveness. His brothers were angry and fearful of Joseph for he had a dream that revealed that one day he would a powerful leader. They resented the love his father displayed for him with the gift of a special robe, Joseph's brothers conspired to resolve their hard feelings towards Joseph by removing him from their lives. (Genesis Chapter 37, verse 3 reads "Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his children because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a long robe with sleeves"...and in verse 5 it says, "Now Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers they only hated him the more." Poor Joseph was held captive while his brothers discussed whether he should live or die. (Genesis verse 24"...and they took him (Joseph) and threw him in a pit.") He was spared his life but sold as a slave. Many emotions must have run through him as he journeyed to his new life. Joseph knew he was loved by his Father and it was all he had to comfort him as he traveled to a distant land to an unknown future.  How dare his brothers take his life into their hands! How dare them to sell him like he was property!  How he must have longed to escape and run to his father for protection.

Joseph must have weighed the situation and decided that although the outlook didn't look too good, he ought to make the best of it. He was far from his home, in a land that was unfamiliar. He may have seemed to have nothing to most, but he had the love of his father and he had a dream
that indicated his life would have change.  He did not focus on the past, desiring to revenge his brothers misdeeds towards him but on the future.
     
On his path to be entrusted with the the food and wealth of Egypt as the Pharoh's highly esteemed advisor, he went through many trials and tribulations. There was little he could do to "fix" the painful situations thrust upon him.  God was with him and provided for him a path out of the pit he was cast into. Joseph interpeted the dreams of two servants that were in the dungeon with him. He then was summoned to interpet the dream of the Pharoh. The Pharoh heeded the message of his dreams and put Joseph in the position of supervising the only resources for life and death during the seven years of drought.

There is a parallel here to the life of Jesus.  Jesus knew he was beloved of his father. The people who should have held him up with high esteem, did not.  He was accused of things he did not do.  Unlike Joseph, he paid the ultimate penalty that could be had, he was put to death.  Like Joseph,
he did become the ruler's right hand man...only the ruler that Jesus serves is the ultimate ruler as he  is the creator of the universe. Through God, like Joseph provided the food to the ones who betrayed him, Jesus provides for all, the bread of life. All those who come before him to seek it and who thereby recognize his authority to do so, are granted eternal life.
   
Forgive and you shall be forgiven.  Six words that say so much. Joseph did not wait until his brothers sought him out to forgive them.  He forgave them long before that because he loved them. Jesus forgave everyone and in his love he died on the Cross for our redemption. Joseph went on in his life despite how it may have seemed that he was fighting a constant uphill battle.  His belief in God, the love his father had for him shown in the coat, and the dream he had sustained him.  Our belief in God, the love God has for us, and the dream he has for us in our lives can sustain us through our troubled times.  We don't have to wait for an apology to forgive.

Joseph trusted in the Lord and followed this path. In interpeting these dreams in giving help he was paying forward. Joseph had no idea that he would be brought before the Pharoh to do interpet his dream. In fact it was his prior gift of interpeting the dreams of the two servants in the dungeon that led to his being summoned. Paying forward is when you do things or help someone for nothing in return. God wants to see what is in our hearts. Praying to God for the winning lottery ticket so you can give away some to charity sounds nice. If you are not giving to charity now, there is a good chance you won't then either. In my heart I know when God summons me to help someoneand I act on it. Likewise I know that when I have been in peril he has sent others to me. Paying forward can be as simple as calling someone who you know is down...or as complicated as helping to provide funds to someone in a financial jam.  It's all about where God leads us and our willingness to listen to our hearts.  In the process we learn the gifts we receive from giving.  As Jesus said in ....Scripture ...when I was hungry you fed me. when I was in prision you visited me...   

 Forgive and you shall be forgiven.  If we seek forgiveness, yet refuse to forgive others, it eludes us.  We cannot expect from others that which we cannot give ourselves.  Forgiveness frees us from dwelling in the negative feelings that we have when we feel anger and insult with others actions. Forgiveness frees us to move on in our lives and not allow anything to  impede our path on our way to our dreams.  The story of Joseph is a great example of faith, love and forgiveness.

Another one of my first articles on Gather that I decided to repost.