I am a stupid man. And because of that I let the enemy use me as a weapon to hurt someone. It wasn’t the first time, and, unfortunately, probably won’t be the last, as much as I wish it were. I too, was hurt, since they were also used as a weapon against me. So there we were, treating each other like enemies. Feeling like enemies. Suspicion. Betrayal. Hostility. Pain.
The problem was, we weren’t enemies, and we both knew it. We stood teetering on the brink of something that was either going to end in tragedy, or opportunity. But to make it into an opportunity it has to be examined. Every one of us could grow much faster in Christ if we would subject the bad stuff that happens to us to immediate Spiritual Analysis. How did I feel? What did I see (notice)? I felt the presence of an enemy, but I was not looking at an enemy. In fact, we both wanted the same thing, but my stupidity had opened old wounds, and had given the real enemy an opportunity to attack.
That’s it, then. There was an enemy present, but it was not us. We were merely weapons in his hands, and we had both allowed him access to our heads.
People are not our enemies; not even those who have done us seemingly irreparable harm. The true enemy uses us against each other for his own purposes. Once he has us divided he wins. After that we tend to stay on automatic, and all he has to do is occasionally stoke the memory with some trigger or familiar connection to send us spiraling into self-destruction again. Being such heavily emotionally driven creatures makes us easy marks.
Someone will say, do, or neglect something that hurts me. It may be that they intended to hurt me, but most likely they didn’t; I just chose to interpret it that way. This is a normal occurrence, especially in our current fallen state. It really can’t be avoided in our day to day interactions with each other. But what I decide to do with that hurt will determine my understanding of God’s love. I can take it to Him and release it at His throne (letting Him absorb the blows, as in a previous journal entry), or I can harbor it and nurture it and become “offended.” The latter is destructive only to me, and is always a clear choice on my part. We all choose what things offend us and what do not. We also choose when certain things offend us and when they do not. For example, sometimes I am offended when some inconsiderate driver cuts me off on the highway, and other times I just slow down and let him pass easily, my mind being preoccupied with other matters. What’s the difference? Each time I was equally treated. One time I chose to get miffed, the other I chose to ignore it. The difference was ME, not the situation.
Forgiveness is about understanding this truth, that we have no human enemies. When we can reach that level of maturity, we will finally realize that forgiveness is not something we DO. It’s something we ARE. It becomes a state of being in which we always dwell. We begin the day by forgiving all offenses and attempts to offend BEFORE they occur. Eventually, as we approach Christ more deeply in our relationship with Him, we’d like to reach that state where being offended doesn’t even occur to us, because we see others through His eyes and the way He sees us.
When we can look at each other as siblings in Christ and honestly say, “You are more important to me than the thing you did to hurt me,” we will finally understand the look of love that Jesus gave Peter after Peter’s emphatic denial of Him. I want to see and be seen that way more than anything else in this life.
Father, lead me on Your path to “becoming” forgiveness. Show me how priceless each person I meet is in Your eyes, and let me not forget how priceless I am to You. Teach me to make allowances for the faults of others, and to release all bitterness, offense, and pain to You. Teach me that I am not as important as the love You share through me to others. Make me conform more and more to Your Holy name. Amen.
The problem was, we weren’t enemies, and we both knew it. We stood teetering on the brink of something that was either going to end in tragedy, or opportunity. But to make it into an opportunity it has to be examined. Every one of us could grow much faster in Christ if we would subject the bad stuff that happens to us to immediate Spiritual Analysis. How did I feel? What did I see (notice)? I felt the presence of an enemy, but I was not looking at an enemy. In fact, we both wanted the same thing, but my stupidity had opened old wounds, and had given the real enemy an opportunity to attack.
That’s it, then. There was an enemy present, but it was not us. We were merely weapons in his hands, and we had both allowed him access to our heads.
People are not our enemies; not even those who have done us seemingly irreparable harm. The true enemy uses us against each other for his own purposes. Once he has us divided he wins. After that we tend to stay on automatic, and all he has to do is occasionally stoke the memory with some trigger or familiar connection to send us spiraling into self-destruction again. Being such heavily emotionally driven creatures makes us easy marks.
Someone will say, do, or neglect something that hurts me. It may be that they intended to hurt me, but most likely they didn’t; I just chose to interpret it that way. This is a normal occurrence, especially in our current fallen state. It really can’t be avoided in our day to day interactions with each other. But what I decide to do with that hurt will determine my understanding of God’s love. I can take it to Him and release it at His throne (letting Him absorb the blows, as in a previous journal entry), or I can harbor it and nurture it and become “offended.” The latter is destructive only to me, and is always a clear choice on my part. We all choose what things offend us and what do not. We also choose when certain things offend us and when they do not. For example, sometimes I am offended when some inconsiderate driver cuts me off on the highway, and other times I just slow down and let him pass easily, my mind being preoccupied with other matters. What’s the difference? Each time I was equally treated. One time I chose to get miffed, the other I chose to ignore it. The difference was ME, not the situation.
Forgiveness is about understanding this truth, that we have no human enemies. When we can reach that level of maturity, we will finally realize that forgiveness is not something we DO. It’s something we ARE. It becomes a state of being in which we always dwell. We begin the day by forgiving all offenses and attempts to offend BEFORE they occur. Eventually, as we approach Christ more deeply in our relationship with Him, we’d like to reach that state where being offended doesn’t even occur to us, because we see others through His eyes and the way He sees us.
When we can look at each other as siblings in Christ and honestly say, “You are more important to me than the thing you did to hurt me,” we will finally understand the look of love that Jesus gave Peter after Peter’s emphatic denial of Him. I want to see and be seen that way more than anything else in this life.
Father, lead me on Your path to “becoming” forgiveness. Show me how priceless each person I meet is in Your eyes, and let me not forget how priceless I am to You. Teach me to make allowances for the faults of others, and to release all bitterness, offense, and pain to You. Teach me that I am not as important as the love You share through me to others. Make me conform more and more to Your Holy name. Amen.
I like that last idea, Les - becoming forgiveness. Fight the good fight, man.
Posted by: raj | April 26, 2010 at 07:56 PM
Always good to hear from you, Raj. Always. God bless you guys. What service are you going to now?
Posted by: Les | April 27, 2010 at 05:52 PM