That will be $23 quadrillion please

Today's Story
How much you pay for cigarettes depends on where you live. But there’s nowhere on Earth that charges $23 quadrillion – that’s $23,148,855,308,184,500, to be precise – a pack.
But thanks to a computer error, that’s how much a New Hampshire man paid at a gas station using his pre-paid Visa card. When he checked his balance online later he discovered the amount – plus the $15 bank fee for being overdrawn, just to add insult to injury.
Josh Muszynski told TV station WMUR:
"It is a lot of money in the negative, something I could never, ever afford to pay back. My children could not afford it, grandchildren, nothing like that."
He spent two hours on the phone with Bank of America before the bank removed the charge and the overdrawn fee. In a statement, Visa Debit Processing Services said:
"Visa regrets any inconvenience to our customers, and has taken immediate steps to ensure this error doesn't occur again."
(To see the full article by Christopher Nickson, 7/16/09, go to news.digitaltrends.com)
God's Story
Matthew 18:21-35 [New Living Translation]
21 Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”
22 “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!
23 “Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. 24 In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. 25 He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt.
26 “But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ 27 Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.
28 “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.
29 “His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. 30 But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.
31 “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. 32 Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ 34 Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.
35 “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.”
What does God's Story teach us about forgiveness?
In today's passage, Jesus is being asked a question about how many times we are supposed to forgive someone who sins against us. Jesus could have just said, "An infinite amount of times" and been done with His lesson...but that isn't the kind of teacher He was. He always had a good story ready to help us better understand the truth He was communicating.
You can just imagine the outrage of His listeners when they heard about this guy who was forgiven millions by the king and then turns around and demands that someone else pays him the little amount he is owed. That's crazy! That just doesn't sound right! What was this guy thinking!?!
And then Jesus shines the light on us and teaches that this is just how we are when we refuse to forgive someone who does something against us.
In today's story, Mr. Muszynski found himself with a debt that was simply impossible for him to pay. I can't even imagine what $23 quadrillion looks like. It is an insurmountable bill...that is for sure!
You and I are in the same spot spiritually. Our "bill" is way too big for us to even think about paying back. The ONLY way for us to stand in God's presence is to have that bill forgiven. THE King has done just that!
Who are we to then turn around and not forgive others? (That's crazy. That just doesn't sound right. What are we thinking!?!)
My Story
How can we connect today's story and God's Story with my story?
Stop and think about your sins from the last 24 hours...thoughts, words, attitudes, actions that weren't pleasing to God. If you really think through this past day, that list can be pretty long. What would that list then look like for the past week...month...year...all of your years? Is there even enough paper to write them all down? I don't know about you, but I hate the thought of seeing that list. At the same time it causes me to be all the more grateful for the forgiveness I have been offered.
Praise God specifically for His amazing forgiveness and grace to you...your debt is gone!
Their Story
How can we connect today's story, God's Story and my story with my friend's story?
Are there any sins against you that you are still holding against someone? Are you making someone pay back a few bucks when you have been forgiven millions? Talk to God about that.
If He leads you to...go talk to that person. Prayerfully and gently let them know that they have hurt you but that you are choosing to forgive them.
If God leads, share with them that you too have been forgiven. Maybe you will even get a chance to tell them the story that Jesus shared. God may use your forgiveness for them to lead them to His forgiveness for them!
About Daily Devos
The Daily Bide is brought to you by a team of writers from Youth for Christ/USA. The writers all have various years of experience in youth ministry but share a common bond in serving Jesus and discovering what it means to abide deeply everyday and to connect God's Story with those around them.