Oh my goodness, it seems as though the world is filled with nothing but sour grapes! Everywhere I turn on the internet; it seems that there is so much anger, rage, resentment, and just plain whining. Most of this is about politics and/or religion. Yet there is a cynicism about most everything else. The left is attacking the right, the right is attacking back. The middle is erupting in between. People are writing and speaking things that used to be unspeakable. Manners and human decency seem to have gone by the wayside. Vulgarity and profanity seems to be the flavor of the day. I’m not even going to begin to try and figure out why. I have my thoughts about that, but that’s not what I want to write about.What I want to write about is what I believe. Rather than ramping up the ever popular blame game, I believe that it would have been better had everyone blogging, tweeting, facebook-ing, texting and instant-messaging had taken a deep breath and simply stopped to pray for all effected by the shootings in Arizona last Saturday.
Society is so quick to hate… to hate one another and in turn hate ourselves. Diversity is such a big word these days… yet to me, if someone is different, if someone thinks different, believes different, it’s easier to hate them. Even the people promoting diversity are guilty of this. The just don’t see it. This raging anger that seems to be exploding everywhere is frightening. People seem to love to hate… to find it thrilling. How can that be? Don’t they get that it’s toxic, and that in reveling in it, they are merely destroying themselves?
Jesus called on us to love one another, not to hate! We’re supposed to lift each other up, not tear each other down.
- John 13:34
I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. - 1John 2:9
He who says he is in the light and hates his brother, is in the darkness even until now. - Matthew 5:43-48
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate
your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? - Luke 6:27
“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you" - Leviticus 19:18
You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord. - Romans 12:20-21
To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good - Luke 6:35
But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. - Matthew 5:44
But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you
Of course, I’m not a total Pollyanna, and I can get just as snarky as the next guy. But if we could all just stop the venom; if we could just look at each other with some empathy and compassion, if we could love one another like Jesus taught, and if we could just stop the blame game, the world would be a bit more decent. Don’t you think?
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
So if you're feeling angry and resentful, perhaps this prayer will help. I found it online at this site:
Lord Jesus, there is anger in my heart and I cannot root it out.I know that I should calm down and offer the hurt and disappointment to Youbut my emotion is running away with me. Help me to overcome this weakness and give me peace of heart as well as mind.Let me learn from this experience and grow into a better human being. Amen
No comments:
Post a Comment