The first act of kindness that came to mind when I read this month’s prompt was intense and immediate. Doing acts of loving-kindness is easy when we’re dealing with decent folk. However, it’s nearly impossible to obey a nudge from God to love a difficult person.
A few years ago, several difficult people entered my life in a dramatic way. There was no ignoring their presence and there was no denying the difficulties they presented. I wished with all my heart the scenario was just a bad scene in a movie that never needed to occupy my thoughts again.
But no.
God planned to shape and sharpen my character through frequent rubbings against rough-edged personalities.
Painful interactions are unavoidable. (Trust me, as a prone-to-flight person, I tried.) But God specializes in turning our wounds into ways to glorify Him. What is more glorifying to God than His people forgiving, blessing, and praying for those who have used, abused, and falsely accused them?
Yup. I’m enrolled in the how to love your enemy lesson. It’s not an easy course. The homework is grueling. And the temptation to drop out is real. But what amazes me the most is how blessed I felt when I prayed for those who harmed me.
Each prayer released a link from the chain of unforgiveness that desired to drag me under its suffocating weight.
The other thing that surprised me is that there are people who will never change. Never repent. Never apologize or improve. It’s not our job to decide who is stuck. Our job is to pray that a miracle of salvation comes to the hearts of our enemies. To witness a rough-edged sinner come to Christ would be wonderful. That’s the kind of miracle that makes my head turn and causes my mouth to praise God.
Physical healings are nice. But born-again souls are forever miracles that make the angels in Heaven sing, praise, and shout hallelujah.
I know, because I was a rough-edged sinner before I came to Christ. No, I wasn’t a blatant troublemaker or obvious user. But I hurt others through my selfish and dysfunctional behavior. There were some embarrassing—but necessary—apologies I needed to make. And how rewarding to hear back from someone that my apology meant the world to him. This is the kind of miracle I love praying for: Transformed hearts that produce transformed lives that bless and not curse those whom they encounter.
I still mess up. I still need to apologize regularly. But even if others don’t forgive me, God always does because He’s the King of loving-kindness.
Forgive as the Lord forgave you. Colossians 3:13 (NIV)
I’m nosy-to-know what you’ve experienced when you prayed blessings for difficult people?
Wendy L. Macdonald is an inspirational blogger and podcaster who loves to photograph nature on Vancouver Island. Her byline is: “My faith is not shallow because I’ve been rescued from the deep.” Her main website is wendylmacdonald.com where she enjoys interacting with readers.
Wow! this is so beautiful and poignant Wendy. "It’s not an easy course. The homework is grueling. And the temptation to drop out is real." I agree wholeheartedly, but I also love what you say about it not being our job to make sure people respond or even change. Out job is simply to obey and love others. Thanks for this powerful post today.
ReplyDeleteThank you, dear Tracy. Amen to our job being to obey God by loving others. It would be wonderful to be an instrument in the orchestra of God's grace rather than exit via backstage and miss out on God's miraculous performance of salvation in the lives of difficult people. We may need to play our flute in the back row for safety's sake, but play and pray we must.
DeleteBlessings ~ Wendy Mac
It truly is hard to love the unloveable. Even so, I do try. The least I can do is avoid such prickly souls and pray for them. But when they ask for our forgiveness, we must do so. I had a bully who made my life horrid in school. But when he called me and asked for forgiveness, I gave it. We never met again but I count all his bullying to be a closed case.
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful, Bruce, that you were given the gift of an apology. And it's equally wonderful that you closed the case. Your comment blessed me.
DeleteThank you ~ Wendy Mac
Thank you for a lovely post on forgiveness, Wendy. Your sentence meant a lot to me: "Physical healings are nice. But born-again souls are forever miracles that make the angels in Heaven sing, praise, and shout hallelujah." A good reminder that our prayer for physical healing comes second to spiritual healing and renewal.
ReplyDeleteThank you, dear Sandi. Physical healing is wonderful too. So it doesn't hurt to ask. But the older we get, the closer we're all getting to eternity. The forever stuff matters most.
DeleteBlessings - Wendy Mac 🕊️
Poignant and beautifully written, Wendy. Thank you for this up close and personal post on what loving one's enemy looks like in working clothes. "The homework is grueling."
ReplyDelete"But what amazes me the most is how blessed I felt when I prayed for those who harmed me." Oh yes, I have found that as well! It is an amazing change of heart.
Like you, I'm so grateful that He's the King of loving-kindness.
Thank you, Wendy!
Thank you, dear Brenda. Although the homework continues, so do the blessings.
DeleteThe King of Kindness is too kind not to reward us for our efforts to trust and obey Him.
Happy Valentine's Day :)