I have had this same discussion many times recently and so it was good to see Bill O'Reilly address this topic on his "Tip of the Day" segment this week. There is a difference between saying you are sorry and making amends or restitution. Seems many in our culture today don't understand the "rules" of an apology. Saying you are sorry is a good place to start, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't DO anything to fix the relationship or the matter.
When we break something, we should FIX it. Didn't you hear that as a kid growing up? Well, maybe not as many today have not been taught manners but that is a topic for another day. The right thing to do, even though many in this culture have lost this art of civility, is to go to a person, say you were wrong and then ask what you can do to repair the damage you have caused. It's what makes the world go round in a peaceful way...love! If you love someone, you would do to them as you would want them to do to you. Wouldn't you want someone to treat you with this kind of love? Then you must DO this kind of love too! If you offend someone, you should make it right, not just say, "I'm sorry" but find out what they need from you to repair the damage you have caused.
This is seen everyday in our world we live in when we file an insurance claim for an "accident'. When someone hits your car, there is a process that unfolds to repair the damage. We have insurance to cover our mistakes when driving. Well, the same thing should be true for our actions in life. When we cause a "foul" there should be an exchange, a payment, a repair to make it right.
Actions ALWAYS speak louder than words and in this case, if you apologize to someone, you also must be willing to MAKE it right by doing something. Words are cheap! What a wonderful world this would be if people would just OWN UP on what they have done. We ALL fail. We ALL need to be able to own it, address it, confess it and repair it.
