October 29
Do not say, “I’ll do to them as they have done to me; I’ll pay them
back for what they did.” Proverbs 24:29
Not being remembered; the apparent snub in public; the rude gesture; the careless comment; being overlooked for another; broken relationships; every day there are reasons for hurt feelings, for feeling unloved or forgotten. From there we allow our spirits to be bristled to the point of resentment and subsequent anger. For some of us it’s a knee jerk reaction, a learned behavior that perpetuates, causing harm in all directions. Can we change?
Looking at today’s passage from Scripture, we may readily think about it in terms of retaliation for the many atrocious things that happen to some of us in these days of upheaval, or we hear about on the news, such as a violent crime or destructive relationships; not how it applies to us, in how we react to the many small ways we are slighted. We may blindly think “we” would never attempt to “get back” at someone. Yet day after day payback is played out in small ways; the lack of communication, “forgetting” special days, not reaching out to another’s need, impatience, indifferent behavior and far worse. It takes brutal honesty with ourselves to consider we are being revengeful and unkind, and to keep before us that as followers of Christ, we are called to be a just people, an example to others on this earth.
It may be difficult to comprehend how someone who has been victimized can be forgiving, but anger held tightly like a second skin, is more harmful to us, than any perpetrator could ever be. Although it may be challenging to do so, the simple act of forgiving when we have been wronged, brings healing and peace. I am reminded of Blessed Pope John Paul II going to the prison that held Mehmet Ali Agca, the person who nearly fatally shot him, to forgive him and pray with him, and he was quoted as saying, “I sincerely forgive him.”(1) How often have we heard of family members of those horribly mistreated doing the same? Their answers over and over again when questioned about what motivates them, are all very similar. “It is the right thing to do.” “It is the Christian thing to do.” “I had to do it for me. “I had to find peace and closure to this terrible event.” “It is what Christ commands us to do.” Forgiveness is necessary for all of us.
In the prayer Christ taught us, “The Hour Father,” we ask our God to “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us;” not just what we consider significant failings, all of them! We all need forgiveness, for we are human. We make mistakes; we hurt one another intentionally or not. Jesus has given us the blueprint for a healthy emotional and spiritual life, and it is simple really: to be forgiven, we must forgive and love one another. We may not like what they have done, but we are commanded to love all that God has created.
Meditating on this passage, we recognize that it is only through God’s grace that we can change, that we have the ability to be messengers of peace and justice through our actions. Pray for peace. Pray for justice. Pray for the self-control to think before you act. Pray for the ability to forgive those you know are waiting for you to do so. Pray for the patience and the forbearance to be an example of fairness and justice on this earth; that person God is seeking you to be. And “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding” (Phil 4:7) will be with you.
God, we want to be at peace with our families, with our friends, with our communities, with the world. Help us to be persons of integrity; people who can conduct ourselves with understanding and love.
1. Wikipedia 2013
Copyright© 2013 Kathleen A. Matson
Do not say, “I’ll do to them as they have done to me; I’ll pay them
back for what they did.” Proverbs 24:29
Not being remembered; the apparent snub in public; the rude gesture; the careless comment; being overlooked for another; broken relationships; every day there are reasons for hurt feelings, for feeling unloved or forgotten. From there we allow our spirits to be bristled to the point of resentment and subsequent anger. For some of us it’s a knee jerk reaction, a learned behavior that perpetuates, causing harm in all directions. Can we change?
Looking at today’s passage from Scripture, we may readily think about it in terms of retaliation for the many atrocious things that happen to some of us in these days of upheaval, or we hear about on the news, such as a violent crime or destructive relationships; not how it applies to us, in how we react to the many small ways we are slighted. We may blindly think “we” would never attempt to “get back” at someone. Yet day after day payback is played out in small ways; the lack of communication, “forgetting” special days, not reaching out to another’s need, impatience, indifferent behavior and far worse. It takes brutal honesty with ourselves to consider we are being revengeful and unkind, and to keep before us that as followers of Christ, we are called to be a just people, an example to others on this earth.
It may be difficult to comprehend how someone who has been victimized can be forgiving, but anger held tightly like a second skin, is more harmful to us, than any perpetrator could ever be. Although it may be challenging to do so, the simple act of forgiving when we have been wronged, brings healing and peace. I am reminded of Blessed Pope John Paul II going to the prison that held Mehmet Ali Agca, the person who nearly fatally shot him, to forgive him and pray with him, and he was quoted as saying, “I sincerely forgive him.”(1) How often have we heard of family members of those horribly mistreated doing the same? Their answers over and over again when questioned about what motivates them, are all very similar. “It is the right thing to do.” “It is the Christian thing to do.” “I had to do it for me. “I had to find peace and closure to this terrible event.” “It is what Christ commands us to do.” Forgiveness is necessary for all of us.
In the prayer Christ taught us, “The Hour Father,” we ask our God to “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us;” not just what we consider significant failings, all of them! We all need forgiveness, for we are human. We make mistakes; we hurt one another intentionally or not. Jesus has given us the blueprint for a healthy emotional and spiritual life, and it is simple really: to be forgiven, we must forgive and love one another. We may not like what they have done, but we are commanded to love all that God has created.
Meditating on this passage, we recognize that it is only through God’s grace that we can change, that we have the ability to be messengers of peace and justice through our actions. Pray for peace. Pray for justice. Pray for the self-control to think before you act. Pray for the ability to forgive those you know are waiting for you to do so. Pray for the patience and the forbearance to be an example of fairness and justice on this earth; that person God is seeking you to be. And “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding” (Phil 4:7) will be with you.
God, we want to be at peace with our families, with our friends, with our communities, with the world. Help us to be persons of integrity; people who can conduct ourselves with understanding and love.
1. Wikipedia 2013
Copyright© 2013 Kathleen A. Matson