1 Peter 3:9
Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t snap
back at those who say unkind things about you. Instead, pray for God’s
help for them, for we are to be kind to others, and God will bless us
for it.
The
Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by
permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois
60188. All rights reserved.
Politics is like a magnet
for me these days…no matter how much I try to refrain from the pull of the
“banter” and “he said/she said” – or stories about the latest big
“hoopie-do” – I have trouble resisting. I really don’t want to get
sucked in and spend my time watching and listening – but I find that
sometimes I cannot tear myself away. And it is good to be informed…but
only to a point.
Lately, a lot of what has been reported is
simply a back-and-forth exchange of ugly attacks. Last Saturday, one
candidate stated a very ugly opinion about a U.S. Senator who was
captured in Vietnam and held for five years as a prisoner of war. To
this senator’s credit, he did not retaliate. Oh, don’t worry – plenty
of other people came to his “rescue” and let this candidate have it for
the horrible thing that he said. But the “victim” merely asked that
this person apologize to other veterans who were collectively
disrespected by the comments.
From an early age, we are given
mixed signals…”Don’t hit back!” ...”Take the high road!”…”Treat others
as you wish to be treated.” And then when a child bites another, some
adults will bite that child. Or children hit each other – and get a
spanking! So we often grow up picking and choosing when to follow “the
Golden Rule” – and when to repay evil for evil. Often, we lash out when
we are hurt or vulnerable. Someone betrays us in some manner, so we
make an ugly comment about him/her…or post something unkind on social
media – even if only a thinly veiled cartoon or quote that everyone
knows references the person who hurt us.
We lash out…and beg
forgiveness later. In the heat of the moment, we lose our temper and
tell someone “how we really feel.” We strike out in moments of profound
frustration and disappointment. I get it! This is human nature…and we
are humans!
But God has told us that He will handle all of these
things for us. If we really, truly believe Him…we have to let Him do
this. We have to demonstrate to others – and to God – that we are fully
confident that He will take care of those who wrong us…that vengeance
really will belong to Him. More importantly, we have to demonstrate
that God will get us through tough situations…that He is bigger than any
betrayal, evil act, ugly comment or unkind gesture – and that in and
through Him, we are bigger, too.
This is one of the
toughest characteristics of a Christian disciple that we are called to
demonstrate. But it is also one of the most important. When we hold
our tongue, carry on with our head and shoulders held high, and walk in
the love of Jesus Christ where most would have fallen apart and shown
out, people notice – and God is glorified.
Let’s spend some
time in prayer and meditation today and ask God to strengthen us in this
area. Let’s learn to bask in the blessings and satisfaction of knowing
that we “let go and let God.” Instead of biting back, let’s bite our
tongue…and walk away with our head held high. And let’s pray that our
political candidates and others learn to do the same!
©2015 Debbie Robus
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