Make the decision to forgive before you have the opportunity to forgive.

1. Evaluate

41 “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? 42 How can you think of saying, ‘Friend, let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.

2. Communicate

“Rebuke with soft words and hard arguments.”

— Proverb

3. Eliminate

“Forgiveness doesn’t excuse their behavior, it prevents their behavior from destroying your heart.” — Unknown

Is communication needed for a situation that needs reconciliation?

If you dug down deep in your heart, would you find a root of bitterness?

Have each person share a high and low from this past week.

Make the decision to forgive before you have the opportunity to forgive.

On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being very disrupted and 1 being at peace, where would you place your current level of personal angst and why?

▶ How can we “make the decision to forgive before we have the opportunity to forgive”?

▶ Read Luke 17:1-6 and Ephesians 4:31-32.

- What is similar and what is different in these two passages?

- What is challenging to you when you read these passages?

▶ Pastor Matt quoted, “Forgiveness doesn’t excuse their behavior, it prevents their behavior from destroying your heart.” - Unknown. Read Hebrews 12:14-15. How could unforgiveness destroy your heart?

Read Luke 6:41-42. What is a next step you could/should take toward forgiving like Jesus did?

Pray for our country to be the United States of America and not the divided states of America.