FORGIVING, WITH ARMS OPEN WIDE

I went to church today and pastor was talking about the disciple Peter who walked on water with Jesus. And many times I have heard about how I ought to "get out of my boat and walk on water like Peter did". Yet never have I heard that Jesus after being denied by Peter three times forgave him the first chance he got. Jesus was not offended at Peter and hold a grudge..."how could you?" Jesus with arms wide open forgave like it never happened,...yet how good we are at holding a grudge. If someone you knew and loved denied you three times at your point of greatest need, how quickly would you get over it? Forgive like He forgave us takes on a whole new meaning, does it not?

IT'S NEVER TOO LATE

He is a man to whom fortune seems to have beamed upon with effortless exertion. Still his transgressions have shocked the self-righteous, whose downfall will be anything but Tiger's pitfall...maybe a bag of chips or worse.

The wearisomest charlatan deliberators who ransack pop culture to find the stumbling and make sure they fall and never rise again.

The man appears to have made grievous errors for which there will be repercussions, make no mistake about that. But there is hope enough...even for Tiger Woods.

Hebrews 4:15-16 "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched by the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need."

Tiger is the king of a sport I personally have no regard for, unless he is playing it. He has my respect and will continue to for accomplishing a feat I am 99.9% sure I never will: he has earned it. I unaffectedly wish him well and pray he bears the degradation he has sentenced himself to not in hopeless listlessness, but with hope in a better tomorrow for himself and his aggrieved family. Mostly, that he receives mercy from God, mercy that was provided before he ever needed it. There is mercy for us all when we need it and when we don't think we need it.

Lamentations 3:21 "This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness."

It is easy to censure and disparage, only let us remember and be sure to treat him exactly as we would wish to be treated if we were in his place—just his place—not in his shoes or golf shoes as that will probably never happen. Let us govern our attempts to lessen him in our own esteem and quit pretending that we just found out that he is, indeed human. He has a judge and I am not it; he has congregations of accusers who gather in forums to accuse; but he also has an advocate:

1 John 2:1 "My little children, these things I write unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."

Whilst we frolic in sanctimonious debates about his privacy issues, whether he deserves it, needs it, or whether we will mercifully accord it, make sure we don't find you fallen, privately, besides your peanut butter and jelly sandwich or your LCD screen of choice. Or you could just hit the golf course and break a sweat or get a hole in 8 but there are no guarantees—you understand.

How about prudential consideration of the man and his family? God bless his wife, his children and God bless us, Everyone.