In the Lord’s Prayer we pray, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us…”. It’s not, “You forgive me, God, and then I’ll forgive them.” Nope, it’s the other way around. Jesus tells us as much in today’s Gospel (Mt 5:20-26) when he says, “Leave your gift at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother.”

“Lord, before I receive You in Holy Communion this morning, I resolve to spend time in prayer forgiving everyone who has hurt me. Thank You, Lord, for Your many blessings, especially for Your forgiveness. Amen.”

(Forgive Us Our Trespasses was first published on the blog Reflections of a Lay Catholic)

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