Forgiveness Plus

"Please forgive me, Lord," prayed Mateo one night at bedtime. "I didn't mean to run into Mrs. Allen's fence this afternoon. Though I guess I shouldn't have been cutting across her lawn, since she told me not to do that. I won't do it again. Please forgive me for breaking her rosebush too. Amen." He jumped up and climbed into bed, ready to be tucked in.Mateo's mother kissed him and covered him up. "Mateo," she said, "you didn't say anything to me about Mrs. Allen's fence. What happened?"Mateo frowned. "Do I have to tell you? I already asked Jesus to forgive me.""Yes, and I know He has forgiven you," Mom assured him, "but if you share what happened, I might be able to help you make amends.""Make amends?" asked Mateo. "What does that mean?""It means to make things right with someone. The Bible teaches that if our sin hurts somebody besides ourselves, we must do our best to make things right with that person too," explained Mom. "Jesus forgives us when we sin, but we're still responsible t