Proverbs 20:22
Don’t try to get even.
Trust the Lord,
and he will help you.
The
Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by
permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois
60188. All rights reserved.
“He started it!”
“She hit me first!”
“I’ll make them pay!”
We
humans learn early to retaliate! And I’ll tell you something…it’s not
just us! I observed our two cats “go at it” back in the day. What would
start out as an innocent mutual face washing could turn into WWIII! I
saw a video on Facebook of two male deer who had sparred with each other
until their antlers were entangled, and neither could pull away. A
brave man stepped in and worked to separate them…ultimately breaking one
point of a buck’s antler in order to free the pair.
Do we really
want to act like animals? Because when you boil it down, a lot of our
actions and reactions to the comments and jabs of others are no less
rational than those of two sibling cats – or a couple of bucks jockeying
for position with the herd! And sometimes, God has to step in and
“break an antler or two” in order to get us back on track!
We would do well to start with God…to go to Him before
things escalate into a brawl – or as quickly thereafter as possible.
At the first sign of insult or division, we should stop and ask God to
handle things for us…and for wisdom to know how to move forward. Not
all conflicts are readily avoidable…but our goal should be to keep them
to the barest minimum. With God at the helm of our ship, this will be
so much easier.
So the next time a thought of revenge or a
“snappy comeback” enters your brain, stop and take a deep breath. Speak
a quick silent prayer and ask God to guide your words and actions. Let
go…and let God handle these situations. You’ll likely avoid getting
“stuck in a rut”…and everyone will be better for your faithful
obedience!
©2015 Debbie Robus
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