In our Gospel reading from St. Matthew 18, St. Peter asks Jesus, "How many times must I forgive my brother?" Jesus answer was seventy times seven. Today we look find that the meaning of the number our Lord gives equates to the full extent of the mercy of God. The more we consider the mercy that God is, the more we should be in wonder and awe knowing that this profound mercy is constantly directed at our lives. If we will just open a part of our soul, it will flood in. Those who experience the mercy and forgiveness of Christ in their own lives find it much easier to give mercy to their offenders and be freed from harboring unforgiveness to those who have offended us.