So that’s all very well – but what about in your own life? Let’s start with you – are there any people that you don’t think have forgiven you? What about you – is there anyone you haven’t forgiven? Is there anything that you need to repent from (stop doing)? Is there anything you need to obey God about what you should be doing? God is the very best at forgiving. Read this about God: He is merciful and tender toward those who don’t deserve it; he is slow to get angry and full of kindness and love. 9He never bears a grudge, nor remains angry forever. 10He has not punished us as we deserve for all our sins, 11for his mercy toward those who fear and honor him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. 12He has removed our sins as far away from us as (far as) the east is from the west. Psalm 103:8 Living Bible Write down what you like about God’s character from what these verses tell you: We all slip up – but God wants to forgive you and take the guilt away from you – that’s why Jesus died on the cross. Are you willing (with God helping you) to also repent & obey? What will your answer be?

Your leader will share out a pack of M&M’s – each person has to get the same amount each – make sure they do it fairly! What happens when we do something wrong– when we slip up? OK, lets take an example – say (just for arguments sake) that YOUR Max leader gave out the M&M’s unfairly. Let’s take a look: How do you feel if you have been wronged?: How SHOULD your Max leader feel if they have done something wrong?: Ok, so all round the world, people are doing stuff wrong! Some of it is even worse than giving out the wrong number of M&M’s! So, the world is full of people (like you and me) who have had wrong stuff done to us! That makes us mad! And the world is full of people who have done wrong things (like you and me) and we feel guilty about it! Surely, the world will explode! But wait. Suddenly, the saloon doors open, and there he stands, with a six shooter on either side. Yep, it’s FORGIVENESS all right… Forgiveness simply means that you no longer want to hold someone responsible for the wrong things they have done. Easy to say, hard to do. For example, say (just for arguments sake) that YOUR Max leader gave out the M&M’s unfairly – to forgive them, you would want to no longer hold a grudge against them. In this case, you would want to still be mates with them too. And next time you see them, you wouldn’t want to bring the *&* subject up again if it had all been dealt with. That’s forgiveness. What is the world like without forgiveness? HOW DOES FORGIVENESS WORK IF YOU AREN’T A CHRISTIAN? If you aren’t a christian, you have two options 1. Be a nice person – try to forgive other people and ask others to forgive you. 2. Not even bother about forgiving anyone or asking anyone to forgive you! The problem is that you will (guaranteed!) end up bitter and angry. But then you also have the small problem of what happens when you meet God, and haven’t asked for his forgiveness! HOW DOES FORGIVENESS WORK IF YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN? If you are a christian, it’s a bit different 1. God has forgiven you of all you have done wrong, and promises to keep on forgiving you. I will forgive their sins and forget the evil things they have done. Jer 31:34 CEV 2. God EXPECTS you to do the same – he expects you to forgive others and ask people to forgive you when you have done wrong. …be kind and merciful, and forgive others, just as God forgave you because of Christ. Eph 4:32 CEV But Forgiveness has got two good mates, and these 3 guys should never be separated! You see, you can be forgiven something, but then if you turn round and do it again and again, what’s the point? So Forgiveness is the start. Repentance simply means to turn around – to try and stop doing what you were sorry for! Repentance is the middle guy. Obedience means instead of doing wrong, you choose to do what God lets you know is right in the Bible.Obedience is the third guy. So, Forgiveness gets you off the hook from what you have done wrong Repentance helps you not to do it again. And finally obedience helps you to do what you should CAUTION: Heaps of people want to be forgiven, but not many want to repent or obey…!