![[GospelWeb.net Globe]](../graphics/GW90logo.gif)
Inspirational Article
From
Joanne Lowe
Index of Writings by Joanne Lowe on Gospel Web
![[GospelWeb.net Bible]](../graphics/bible005.gif)
|
|
Inspirational Article
From
|
|
Christmas is twelve days away and many of us will be gathering with family and friends. Have you ever noticed that it seems like almost every time people get together that there is some kind of conflict? Joyce Landorf, a speaker and author, talked about that very thing on one of her teaching tapes. Joyce said that someone told her “Thanksgiving is coming and my brother-in-law has managed to wreck every Thanksgiving and he is bound to do it again this year.”
We are to overcome evil with good and feed our enemies and give them drink if they are thirsty. However, we need to be certain that we are doing it with the right motives. We should be feeding them and giving them something to drink because we care about them, not because we want to get revenge. If ever someone has a right to get revenge, it is our precious Saviour.
He was abused and treated worse than any person has ever been treated or ever will be treated. Yet, while hanging on that old rugged cross of torture and agony, He said “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” Oh, that you and I would have a heart filled with compassion and unconditional love for people like our precious Saviour does.
We have a choice when people say unkind things to us. We can say something harsh and unkind in return to them or we can be quiet and not say anything. However, it is impossible for us to be quiet on our own. We are still in the flesh and we are not perfect. We need to ask Jesus to please help us to be quiet and not say something harsh in return to the people who hurt us. It is only through the power of Jesus working in our hearts that we will be able to be quiet and not say something hateful in return to them.
Are you creating peace in your home and with your family and friends or are you creating turmoil? Do you say harsh things back to the ones who hurt you? If so, ask Jesus to forgive you and ask Him to help you be quiet. As my Mother told me when I was a child “If you don’t have anything good to say, keep your big mouth shut!” I think we need to do this very thing.
If we can’t say something kind, then we shouldn’t say anything. Ask Jesus to help you be quiet and then pray for the ones who hurt you. Also, we need to be careful that we don’t hurt people ourselves. Sometimes we hurt people and we aren’t even aware of it. Let’s make this Christmas a time of peace, joy and happiness by giving the love of Jesus to our families, to our loved ones and friends and to everyone we meet. There is no greater gift than the gift of unconditional love that we can give to our loved ones.