“Home is where you are loved the most and act the worst.”

Have you heard that before? Maybe. Have you lived that before? Almost certainly! Homes and the families that live there have a unique dynamic that isn’t found anywhere else in life. There is so much love between spouses, parents, children, siblings, even grandparents in some homes.

All that love leads to some wonderful things! But all that love also leads to bad behavior. We feel so comfortable around loved ones that we can unintentionally think, “Even if I act this way, they have to love me – they’re my family.” And even with all that love, it can be hard to forgive a spouse who doesn’t regularly pull their weight or a sibling who’s constantly pushing your buttons on purpose.

So where do we find forgiveness – for ourselves and for the people we love the most but hurt us the worst?

God gives us the answer: forgiveness in families flows from God’s forgiveness. See, even though God loves us so much, we hurt him each and every day when our behaviors and decisions don’t line up with his will for our lives. But whenever we confess our sins, God is always ready and waiting to forgive us for Jesus’ sake. When we recognize our own sin and drink deeply of God’s never-ending forgiveness, it becomes much easier to forgive our family members when they sin against us.

“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

Ephesians 4:31

Try This Out!

When a family member hurts you this week but then comes to apologize, don’t say “It’s okay.” Instead, say “I forgive you.” Better yet, say “I forgive you and God forgives you.” It’s a small change but it makes all the difference! Sin isn’t okay and we can acknowledge that. Forgiveness is real and is really needed – between family members and between us and God.