The sports world continues to grieve the tragic loss of Kobe Bryant, and I’ve been moved by the number of wonderful tributes and story-telling that’s taken place while remembering the legend.
I’ve also been encouraged to hear how such a sad and devastating accident is actually having a positive impact on people. Unfortunately, it often takes a death for us to consider what matters most, and to make some necessary changes in our lives.
Specifically, the message that has been shared and put into action following Kobe’s death is one of forgiveness and reconciliation. (Kobe previously and thankfully experienced both with his wife and former teammate, Shaquille O’Neal.)
The suddenness of Kobe dying reminds us how fragile life is and how quickly we can lose someone we care about. This reminder should give us a sense of urgency to forgive and reconcile without delaying another day.
Former Duke star and ESPN analyst, Jay Williams, brought this up when he was discussing his thoughts about Kobe on Sunday. He encouraged people watching to let go of whatever we have wrong with someone.
Then we heard from former NBA center Kendrick Perkins, who had recently been feuding with Kevin Durant on Twitter. He put an end to it by Tweeting:
“Just wanted to tell you I love you my brother and whatever I did to hurt you I’m sorry bro and hope you forgive me!!! I love you bro!”
Perkins went on to explain in an interview with NBC Boston’s, Gary Tanguay, how their friendship was more valuable than keeping a Twitter beef going.
He shared, “…I also wanted the world to see, hey, if you having problems with a loved one, a friend, a family member, whoever, hey, life is too short. The next 60 seconds is not promised.
“Nip that in the bud and heal those wounds with those people that you love and get past it. That’s what I wanted to do. And I wanted to reach out to KD to let him know like, I love you bro. And I’m not afraid to let the world see that I love you.”
Contemplating death causes us to think differently and can change our perspective, so hopefully today those thoughts can lead us to a desire to forgive and reconcile with those we have issues with.
As followers of Jesus, forgiveness, and grace should absolutely flow from us because His death on the cross changes everything. When we contemplate Jesus’ death (and resurrection) and the free gift of salvation He made available to us, it changes our perspective on forgiveness.
God shows us undeserving grace by forgiving us and setting us free from the penalty of sin, so we, in turn, need to forgive those who hurt us.
Ephesians 4:31-32 (AMP) tells us to “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor [perpetual animosity, resentment, strife, fault-finding] and slander be put away from you, along with every kind of malice [all spitefulness, verbal abuse, malevolence].
“Be kind and helpful to one another, tender-hearted [compassionate, understanding], forgiving one another [readily and freely], just as God in Christ also forgave you.”
Although hard to do, especially when the pain is so deep, let’s be encouraged to stop waiting since we know how fragile and short this life is.
Jesus made a way for us to be forgiven and He also makes a way for us to forgive. Today, let’s look to the cross as a reminder of the forgiveness we’ve been given…and rely on Him to provide us the strength and power we need to move forward and forgive others.
I’m Bryce Johnson and you can UNPACK that!
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I’m filled with thankfulness for the grace and forgiveness You’ve shown me. Please allow me to forgive those who hurt me. Help me ask for forgiveness from those I’ve hurt. I desire to have reconciled relationships and need Your strength and healing power. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.
Discussion Questions for PACKS:
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Who is someone you need to forgive? Who is someone you need to ask forgiveness?
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Why is our understanding of God’s grace critical in allowing us to forgive others?
