Perhaps it may appear ludicrous, but one aspect of forgiveness that I hadn’t previously considered is helping others forgive you. Just like you don’t want to be burdened with unforgiveness, you need to be conscious of this for others who may be harboring unforgiveness toward you.
Somehow I don’t think that our asking for forgiveness stops with the request. Unfortunately, there is no set ‘what to do’ or when or how in the assisting others to forgive you, I just believe that there is no IF. Realizing that your assisting may not result in their walking in forgiveness, I still believe that we need to do what we can. This is the redeeming part of forgiveness.
However, I would suspect that one of the components that would help another is whether or not they believe in the sincerity of the apology. If they sense it is merely one of form from you rather than heart intent then it will be difficult for them to move on. On the other hand if they feel you really are sorry then they will be more likely to accept. And the best way they can judge is if your behavior is changed as a result.
Apologies, forgiveness, moving on are always based on whether or not there is a perceived change. This doesn’t mean you have to agree with the other person or become someone you aren’t, but it does mean that you understand the implications from what you did and are willing to acknowledge your error and desire to make amends.
