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"Beyond Pettiness"Speaking of forgiveness, let’s admit that very little in life ever reaches the point where we need to extend forgiveness. Most of what we deal with falls into the category of IRRITATIONS—her lateness, he left the towel on the floor again, the kid slams the door, mom calls during dinner, the colleague doesn’t return emails promptly. That sort of thing. And since we’re grownups, and reasonably mature, we overlook them and go on. It’s the stuff of life. Everyone has to deal with the same junk. Peter lumps them all these together and says “Charity (love) shall cover the multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8).On the other hand there are offenses that keep us awake at night. These are deep injuries to the soul. Deceit, betrayal, adultery, abuse, public shaming, attacks on one’s character—things that grind on your souls; constantly lurking at the edge of your consciousness, and stealing your joy. These need confrontation, rebuke, and the offer of forgiveness.When Jesus was betrayed and crucified by the very ones he came to save he announced, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.” He was giving up any resentment or anger he might have harbored toward them and leaving them in the Father’s hands. They were not absolved of their guilt by that. They still had to repent and seek forgiveness from the Father. But it left Jesus with a clear conscience.Mature Christians rise above the petty irritations of life. They also lovingly confront the deep hurts with a willingness to forgive. Which is just the way Jesus did it.