Parable of the Mulberry Tree

Luke 17
"If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a
day, and seven times comes back to you and says, 'I repent,' forgive him." The apostles said to the Lord,
"Increase our faith!"

The Prayers of Pawel

Heavenly Father,
I did it again and I know that it was wrong. I knew before I did it that it was wrong. I
know that it is a sin to do it and I know that I keep on doing it and I know that You want me
to stop. I am sorry.
I am sorry for all I have one in the past that has led me to this point. My life before
knowing about Jesus was a life spent in darkness and without boundaries. All that I have done
remains with me, deep inside of me. That darkness in my heart and mind is always with me,
and at the most unexpected moments it surfaces and tempts me to return to it. I am sorry that I
do not, that I did not last night, fight harder to resist. Instead I offered up a lame excuse in
order to justify myself in the moment. And I sinned.
I am reading in your word how Your Son was sinless upon the earth. I read how He
refused the devil in the wilderness even in the face of great moral temptation to reject You
and Your will. And in the garden the night before He let Himself be crucified He was hurting
terribly and still He obeyed Your Word rather than that of His own flesh.
Lord, I want to be strong like that. I want to be willing to suffer pain and endure it just
so I can serve You. I want to know that the pain I feel is because I am honoring You. I want to
choose to endure it because I love You. I suffer some pain willingly but there are some things
that hurt too much or are too difficult for me to face so I run away. I run back to my old ways
and I reject You in the process. I am so sorry.
Lord God, please forgive my sin. Please forgive me, Father. I am sorry and I want to
do better. And thank You, Father, and thank You, Jesus, for that forgiveness. Thank You that
I know that You will never reject me.

Dear God,
I had a tough day today with my friend at work. The place is tough enough to work at
without the nonsense that this guy continually gives me. He did it again. The same thing! I
confess that I lost my cool and hollered at him. And I did it in front of the office in full view
of some students and my principal. So I wound up looking like the bad guy.
Later in the afternoon he came into my room and apologized. Again. Every time he
does this to me, he ends up feeling guilty and comes back to apologize. I’ve told him so many
times that he’s got to stop. I’ve even tried to help him to see what exactly it is that he is doing
and how much it hurts me and our friendship. But he keeps on doing it. I’ve had it with him.
If he doesn’t want to work on this then I’m not going to keep putting myself out there to be
stepped on.
I am sorry, Lord, for my anger and for losing control of it. Please forgive me, and
thank you for Your forgiveness.
 Heavenly Father,
Please help me. I feel very far away from you. I am having trouble at work and I am
having trouble at home. I’m having trouble with my sin. I need You, but You seem so far
away. I even catch myself doubting that any of this is real. Please Lord, I believe in You, help
me in my unbelief. Please build my faith so that I can do the things that You would have me
do, and I could be the man that You would have me be.

Precious Pawel,
You are such a little one. You know that I have done all things for you and I will love
you and keep you forever. But you insist on going your own way instead of following My Son
in The Way. You are close to the kingdom Pawel, but you have not yet grasped it.
As I have forgiven you, you must also forgive. Forgiveness is the greatest act of love
one can commit. It is not merely an acknowledgement of a wrong suffered but it is the giving
up of all control and ownership of the justification deserved in payment for it. I have forgiven
you, my child, because I love you. I no longer look at the weight of your sin nor the cost of
the payment of it. Nor do I look to be justified in the face of it. And I do not see Myself in it; I
see only you and my love for you. You also must do the same. Do not hold on to the
grievance you have against your brother. See him instead. See him as you see yourself; as a
man struggling to overcome the darkness that lies deep within you. The pain he is causing you
is a trifle in comparison to what I have suffered for you and him alike. I will deal with him;
you turn to me and deal with me.
I am asking nothing of you but what I expect from all of my children. I expect you to
love others as I have loved you. Forgiveness is an impossible thing, much like moving that
tree into the sea, but with love you can forgive. And you must, it is your duty. You have
received all from me that you are going to get, Pawel. Now get off of your knees and get to
work. Love my children as I have loved you!

Luke 17
He replied, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be
uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you. Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after
the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'?
Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that
you may eat and drink'? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when
you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our
duty.' "

Mike Spencer/ April 2010