Author: Pastor Andrew
Let’s get real for a second. Do you have a grudge against someone? Maybe it’s a person who bullied you when you were younger. Or it’s a co-worker, family member, or former spouse. Is there someone in your life who you try to avoid at all costs because of something they did to you a long time ago? Keep that person in mind for a moment.
It’s easy to hold grudges against our enemies. And if we’re honest with ourselves, it feels good to hate them. In a way, we attempt to get back at them for what they did to us.
I want to challenge you today with a hard truth. God doesn’t see our enemies as His enemies. He sees them as lost people, created in His image, who desperately need to come home. In Jesus’ longest sermon, The Sermon on the Mount, He tells His disciples to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”
Is Jesus saying we’re supposed to love the people who hurt us? Is He telling us to take time to pray for the person we never want to see again for our entire life? Yes!
To be clear, Jesus isn’t telling you and me to stay in an abusive relationship. If you’re in one right now, get out. Those people we consider enemies are the very men and women He died for. He could care less about our grudges and care about them finding the fullness of life that comes from following Him.
Today, as hard as it might be, I challenge you to pray for that person I asked you to think about at the beginning of our time together. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you get over your grudge and start to grow more into the person God created you to be.
If your enemies are hungry, give them food to eat. If they are thirsty, give them water to drink. (Proverbs 25:21)
