More Practice on Overlooking Offenses

A while back, I wrote a post on how to deal with those who've hurt you. I talked about overlooking an offense -- the second-best option you can choose, when the other person doesn't acknowledge his sin against you, or ask for forgiveness.

I've had new thoughts on this recently. I've been wrangling with that word, "overlook."

Because in that post, I say that to overlook an offense means to take the teeth out of it, to extend a mercy to your offender that he doesn't deserve, to decide not to let his act have mastery over you. That all sounds good and empowering -- but, how exactly can one do it? Or, more precisely, why can one do it? When my soul rises up inside me, and rightly says, "Wrong has been done, and it must be punished!" -- what do I answer? What logic can I give my soul, that evil can go unpunished?

Let's define "overlook."

Noun. "Disregard, ignore, forgive, condone." But here's a different definition: "To have a view from above, to be higher than. To look over, watch."

In order to correctly overlook an offense against me, that I cannot redress or correct, an offense that's never confessed to me as sin, and for which my offender has never asked for forgiveness -- in order to overlook that, I must have an eternal perspective. I must stop looking at the here-and-now of my pain and situation, and remember the big picture of God's judgment. God hears my soul's cry for justice also. He is all about justice. On that awesome day, He will bring every offense into account. All the victims will be vindicated. All the victimizers will be exposed and punishment will be doled out.

This is to all those out there in pain because they've been done wrong.  Stand up, look over the fence of this fallen world, and see eternity. See your vindication in the future, and leave it in God's hands. Live your life knowing that He will make everything fair, in the end. For me, knowing this allows me to put these offenses to rest. Overlooking the offense means looking over into eternity. That day of vindication will be a beautiful day.  God says so.