Romans 12
14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.[c] Do not be conceited.
17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[d] says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:
Sometimes these verses really hit me square between the eyes. I am not good at following through with these commands. I'm not good at living in harmony with those I think have mistreated me. I don't like to build relationships with those who create conflict in my life. I would much rather seek revenge than live at peace. At the very least I would prefer to just avoid them. Lord forgive me.
I need to change. I'm hoping I am not the only one who has this problem. I can look back and see that most of the time I AM in control of living at peace with my enemies. But, I usually choose not to. It is not for us to avenge and repay. We/I am not to pay evil for evil. We are supposed to live at peace with EVERYONE, not just the people we like.
Dear Lord, Forgive me for how I treat people. Help me to love those that I do not love. Help me to be more like you Lord in how I treat my enemies. Help me to leave avenging wrong to you. Change me Lord! Amen!
1 comment:
I'm right there with you Steve. Try as I may I still have trouble forgiving those who have wronged me. Just when I think okay this time I have, that old feeling come back. I know we can never forget but in time, time after time we/I can forgive but only with the Lord's work in our/my heart. Thanks for the great post.
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