Day 9: Seeing Others Through God’s Eyes
Day 9: Seeing Others Through God’s Eyes
“To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him.”
—Daniel 9:9
“Pre-forgiveness is not a human effort—it is a divine gift that frees us to love beyond offense.”
—Dr. Daniel LeBlanc
Seeing Others Through God’s Eyes
Seeing others through God’s eyes and walking in pre-forgiveness are not things we can manufacture through human determination alone. We need divine revelation and the transforming power of the Holy Spirit.
Our natural response to being hurt is often judgment and self-protection. We may begin defining people by what they have done to us, labeling them as betrayers, liars, manipulators, or enemies. Soon, the offense becomes the lens through which we see the entire person.
But pre-forgiveness invites us to see something greater than the offense.
It calls us to look beyond what someone has done and recognize who they are through the eyes of God. This does not mean ignoring harmful behavior, abandoning wisdom, or refusing to establish necessary boundaries. It means we refuse to reduce a person’s entire identity to the worst thing they have ever done.
Pre-forgiveness is the supernatural ability to respond from a heart already prepared with grace. Before the disappointment, misunderstanding, or hurt arrives, our hearts are positioned to release mercy rather than retaliation.
Daniel 9:9 reminds us that mercy and forgiveness belong to God even though humanity has rebelled against Him. Mercy is not something we persuade God to possess; it is part of His very nature.
Before we repented, God had already prepared and provided the way of forgiveness through Jesus Christ. His grace moved toward us before we moved toward Him. We receive that forgiveness through repentance and faith, but the heart of mercy originated with God.
In the same way, pre-forgiveness does not begin with the worthiness of the other person. It begins with the grace of God working within us.
This is not merely a human effort to become more patient, tolerant, or emotionally disciplined. It is a divine work of grace. As we come boldly to the throne of grace, the Holy Spirit strengthens us to lay aside pride, release pain, and surrender our demand for personal repayment.
When the Holy Spirit transforms our perspective, we no longer see people only through the lens of their offenses. We begin to recognize their brokenness, their need for grace, and their potential for redemption.
We may begin to understand that a person’s harmful actions often flow from wounds, fears, insecurities, or struggles we cannot see. This understanding does not excuse wrongdoing, but it can help us respond with compassion rather than condemnation.
Hurt people often hurt people. Those who have never received healthy love may struggle to give it. Those who carry rejection may reject others. Those who live in fear may attempt to control the people around them.
Pre-forgiveness empowers us to look beyond the behavior without denying the damage it caused. It allows us to say, “What you did was wrong, but I refuse to allow your actions to fill my heart with hatred.”
God sees more than the moment of failure. He sees the complete person—their beginning, their wounds, their choices, their calling, and the redemptive work He still desires to accomplish within them.
When we see others through God’s eyes, we stop viewing them solely as obstacles, offenders, or enemies. We begin to see people for whom Christ died and lives that His grace can still transform.
Jesus demonstrated this perspective on the cross. While suffering from the cruelty of those who crucified Him, He prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” He saw beyond their actions and recognized the spiritual blindness beneath their behavior.
Pre-forgiveness does not require you to understand everything about the person who hurt you. It requires you to trust that God sees what you cannot see.
You may never know the full story behind someone’s behavior, but you can refuse to allow judgment to harden your heart. You can entrust that person to God, release the offense, and remain open to the flow of His mercy.
This is the supernatural strength of pre-forgiveness. It guards your heart, keeps your spirit tender, and aligns your perspective with the heart of God. It creates room for His love, wisdom, and mercy to flow through you.
Your challenge today is to think of someone you have defined primarily by what they did to you. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you see that person differently.
You do not have to call wrong behavior right. You do not have to restore trust where trust has not been rebuilt. But you can release the label, surrender the judgment, and ask God to reveal the person beyond the offense.
When you see others through God’s eyes, offense loses its power to define them—and its power to imprison you.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, I come boldly to Your throne of grace, knowing that I cannot live in pre-forgiveness through my own strength.
Fill me afresh with Your Holy Spirit. Transform my heart and renew my perspective so that I may see others as You see them—with mercy, compassion, truth, and redemptive love.
Reveal every place where I have defined someone solely by what they did to me. Forgive me for the labels I have placed upon others and for the judgments I have allowed to harden my heart.
Help me look beyond the offense without denying the pain or excusing what was wrong. Give me wisdom to establish healthy boundaries while remaining free from bitterness, hatred, and revenge.
Remove every root of resentment and empower me to pray for those who have hurt me. Help me entrust them to Your justice, Your mercy, and Your transforming grace.
Today, I choose pre-forgiveness as a way of life. I receive the supernatural strength to release offenses, remain tenderhearted, and allow Your love to flow through me.
I declare that I will walk in freedom, peace, and joy as my heart becomes increasingly aligned with Yours.
In Jesus’ mighty name, amen.
