YEARS ago when I was much younger and maybe less wiser, I loved warning people that I never forgave and remembered every insult throughout my life and would have my revenge for every provocative incident done to me. Then I read this story which changed my attitude and taught me to forgive: A kindergarten teacher told each child in the class to bring along a plastic bag of potatoes.
Each potato would be given a name of a person that the child hated, so the number of potatoes that a child put in his or her plastic bag would depend on the number of people he or she hated. So every child brought some potatoes with the name of the people they hated. Some had 2 potatoes; some 4 while some had up to 5 potatoes. The teacher then told the children to carry with them the potatoes in the plastic bag wherever they went for one week.
Days passed by, and the children started to complain of the bad smell that came from the rotten potatoes in the bag. Besides, those having 5 potatoes also had to carry heavier bags. After the week, the children were relieved because the game had finally ended. The teacher then asked the children: “How did you feel, carrying the potatoes with you for a week?” The children complained of the trouble they had to go through having to carry the heavy and smelly potatoes wherever they went.
Then the teacher told them the hidden meaning behind the game: “This is exactly the problem when you carry your hatred for somebody inside your heart,” she said, “The stink of hatred will dirty your heart and you will carry it with you wherever you go.
If you cannot tolerate the smell of rotten potatoes for just one week, can you imagine what it will be like to have the smell of hatred in your heart for a lifetime?” I am sure the children learnt a lesson for life, though I wish some teacher had done the same thing for me, and I could have saved all those years carrying dislike, hatred and grudges in my heart everyday.
Imagine what kind of a plastic bag God would be carrying if He decided to remember all our mistakes and wrong doings? It would indeed be a giant of a bag. But God doesn’t do that. His forgiveness is so great that he forgives immediately if we ask him. There is no plastic bag of our stuff that He carries along and puts between.
If God can forgive, what fools we are to carry our grudges and hate, and burden ourselves with this unnecessary load. Come on let’s forgive and get rid of this stinking bag of potatoes we have been carrying till now..!
