Luke 6:28 Bless those who curse you, pray for those who despitefully use you.

Do you have someone who has wronged you either by what they are saying or maybe by things they have done?  Are you just about fed up with trying to deal with them and feel like you would really just love to put them in their place and give them a piece of your mind?  I have been in that position more times than I care to think about and it can become overwhelming if you allow it to.  Here are a few steps to finding God’s blessing through it all:

First of all, don’t allow the thoughts of what they are saying or doing to consume you.  If that is your focus then all that will happen is you will become more bitter and angry.  Don’t allow them to rob you of your joy on top of all they have already done!  Focus on God and what He has to say about you and the situation.  Forgive them so they don’t poison your mind with their foolishness and distract you from what God has called you to!

Jesus is always our example of what we ought to be doing in any given situation and when they persecuted Him and nailed Him to the cross to kill Him, His response was to ask God to forgive them because they were clueless and didn’t realize what they were doing.  

In Job 42:10 And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he prayed for his friends.  Hmmmm so the blessing of God came after Job was obedient and prayed for those “friends” of his, imagine that.  Remember Romans 12:19, “Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, l but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord.”  Don’t waste your time and energy and set your focus on God’s plan for your life.  Allow Him to work in their lives.

Is any of this easy to do?  No, of course not!  We all want justice for our situations and we want it now! God sees the whole picture and He knows not only what you need but what they may need in order to grow in their walk with Him or maybe to come to Him for salvation. It is more important to rise above and allow God to do what is best and what needs to be done.  Don’t allow yourself to be easily offended by someone who can’t really make a difference in your life unless you allow them to.  

I challenge you today to pray for whoever is giving you a hard time or has done you wrong.  Pray for God’s grace and mercy for them, they have no idea what they are doing and if they do then God will deal with them.  There will always be jealous people who feel the way up is to tear others down, so be determined today to rise up and be a more godly and more mature person.  Focus on God, not their foolishness.  Ask Him to give you the strength to pray for them in spite of all of your emotions inside telling you to retaliate.  Don’t misunderstand there are times when you need to stand for what is right and speak your mind the key is to not allow it to consume you to the point that it poisons other areas of your life or your walk with God.  There are also times when you need to avoid interaction with some people. “Be still…” so everyone will recognize that He is God!   Handle your situation with class and maturity and then let it go so you can focus on more important things like your walk with God.

Quote: “Wisdom is knowing the right path to take…… integrity is taking it.”  M.H. McKee