There are so many holidays that we don’t keep. You can add Valentine's Day to the list if you are keeping track. It’s not that we don’t love you, we love you all year round, we even draw hearts, but we don’t do Valentine's Day.

November 19th, 1863.

In the chilly afternoon of an early winter, Abraham Lincoln delivered an address to those assembled at a field near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.  His speech has become one of the most renowned in our nation's history.  It was the Gettysburg Address.

The Biblical principles regarding offense and forgiveness are essential to community life.  If we desire to remain in fellowship with one another then we should commit to follow the Bible's pattern for handling offense and granting forgiveness every time an offense occurs... even a minor one.

Consider the words of Paul in his letter to the believers in Colossae:

So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.  Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. "
(Colossians 3:12-14)

Learn more about the steps outlined in Scripture for dealing with those who offend us and granting forgiveness.

The Atlantic ran an incredible 28-photo presentation of the 2013 Powerhouse Fire in California's Angeles National Forest.  The article, entitled The Terrible Beauty of California's Powerhouse Fire, included this image:

Without these powerful reminders from the creation, we can really lose sight of the significance and weight of the words of Scripture that describe the Creator: