And we should not hide behind
humor either. Too often the excuse is that someone cannot "take a joke." Malice
is malice. Gossip is gossip. Unforgiveness is unforgiveness. Paul teaches this
in his letters to the Church at
Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. Ephesians 5: 4
Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing. 1Thessalonians 5: 11
Tearing someone down is not Christian. Building one another
up is. The enemy has a scheme to make you ineffective for the kingdom and unforgiveness
is a part of that scheme. It is a poison that eats away at you. It is contrary
to the plan of God, who forgave you so much more than you will ever be asked to
forgive someone else. It is a poison we readily drink however far too often. If
there is someone you know that you need to reconcile with today, even if you
are the "wronged" party, God is speaking to you today. Remember
Reverend Anthony Wade January 26, 2010
**As a personal aside and testimony I thought I would share my experience with unforgiveness. My father was a bit of a hard man. His discipline was equally hard. Looking back, I deserved most of what I got you reap what you sow. After my parents divorced and I became I teenager. I thought I knew everything; as most teenagers do. There was a lot of anger between my father and his three sons. This led to a distancing on his part. For ten years we were apart. Same city, no contact. With each passing year it became easier to forget. Bitterness set in. These were after all his choices.
Then I got the call from my uncle. My father had passed away, a couple of years prior actually. Suddenly, what seemed so important when I was 18 didn't matter much when I was 28. I realized that I had choices during the past ten years too. It always takes two people to perpetuate a disagreement.
My father was a flawed man, as we all are but he did not deserve to die without his sons. He made mistakes, as we all do, but he deserved a better ending. I say this now because God is putting on my heart that there is someone reading this that needs to reconcile with someone they have had a distance from for some time now. I know it is hard to be the bigger person; but that is what God expects. That is what this devotional is really about. Forgiveness frees you from bitterness and helps you avoid having to stand over someone's grave one day, trying to remember what was so important that you lost each other until the very end.
