Why Forgive?

Yesterday I got to sit in on Sean's "talk" with the youth, which I don't get to do very often anymore. I love hearing his passion for God's Word and seeing his enthusiasm for teenagers. He makes me very proud of who he is and his love for Jesus. He's just so stinkin awesome!!! This week in particular, he talked about forgiveness and how we should respond to our enemies and those who do us wrong. He referenced Matthew 18:22 in which Jesus responds to Peter's question of how many times he shall forgive by saying "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy- seven times." Some versions say "seventy times seven." Point is, the number does not matter. We should be willing to forgive over and over and over no matter what. Because that is what Jesus did for us. And when somebody does us wrong, we need to return back to them love and kindness. Both of these things are extremely hard for me, as I'm sure they are for you too. Because when somebody repeatedly hurts us, why in the world would we want to forgive them knowing that it won't be too long until they do it again? Sometimes I feel if I were to do this, it would just appear as if I am letting others walk all over me. I know this isn't really the case because there is a way to repeatedly forgive and return love but still be able to stand your ground. The tough part is just being able to figure out how exactly to do all that. Who knows? Maybe I'll figure it all out one day. But I highly doubt it since I am human. I can only try my hardest to be an imitator of Christ in this way.