Save us, Lord God, for heaven's sake.
And for earth's sake, make us worth saving.
--unknown

The Liberation of Forgiveness
So what does such forgiveness really mean, we may wonder, and what does it
accomplish? What does it accomplish, not just in the heart of the one forgiven
but in the heart of the one who offers it as well? We've all heard the old adage
of "forgive and forget," but I'm not sure it's so simple as that or that it should
be. For true forgiveness needs to be remembered and never forgotten. It needs
to be honored and respected for the exceptional power that it has. Because it's
a resurrection power that calls forth new life out of the death of the old. When
you or I have been forgiven, we have been given nothing less than the gift of
new life, we have received what is probably love's greatest gift of all. A broken
relationship - between ourselves and another, or perhaps within our own
fractured, divided selves - a broken relationship has been restored, one based
on truth and the courage to confess.

--from the sermon "The Gifts of Doubt and Forgiving"
by the Rev. Margaret B. Gunness

Read the sermon in its entirety.