Episode 31 with Fr. Anthony Gramlich, MIC
Ever feel that God could never love you?
Do you have difficulty forgiving others that have hurt you?
Are you able to forgive yourself and move on after making mistakes?
God is love and Mercy Itself
Today’s episode with Father Anthony Gramlich, MIC, Director of the National Shrine of Divine Mercy, dives deep into the bottomless ocean of God’s forgiveness, mercy, and the love He has for all of us.
The sin of pride keeps us away from God; we must ask for His mercy and He will never force it upon us. With humility, we can ask for forgiveness from God, forgive others, and forgive ourselves.
God’s love is like the Bible story of the prodigal son who left his father and lived a sinful life, yet when he returned his father was there with arms open wide, rejoicing that his son had come home.
The Divine Mercy Image
The beautiful image representing the Merciful Jesus is the Divine Mercy Image.
Two rays emanate from our Savior's heart; one red representing Jesus’ blood poured out for us, the other white representing the water which is the cleansing of our sins, reconciliation, and baptism.
The grace of forgiveness, which God gave to us by sending down his only begotten Son, is something we must pray for. Forgiveness is being able to move on and close the doors to what has caused us pain and suffering in our lives. We must remember that Jesus tells us in order for us to be forgiven, we must forgive those who trespass against us. Remember that this is not only for ourselves, but for the other person as well, because we never know what spiritual walk God is leading another human being on.
We must forgive our enemies, and even pray for them, to repent and be open to receive the blessings that God has in store for them.
Forgiving Ourselves
Jesus said that he hates the sin but loves the sinner.
We must also forgive ourselves and try to sin no more. That is an act of mercy.
For many, there are two thieves in our life just as there were two thieves at Jesus’ side at the Crucifixion. For many of us, there is the thief of the past; we dwell and live and ruminate about our past mistakes and do not appreciate the beauty of the day. For others, it is the thief of the future. We think and become fearful about the possibilities of events in the future that we become anxious and fearful. Again, we must stay in the day and live each day to its fullest.
