Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving, one another, even as God forgave you.
Ephesians 4:32 (NKJV)
Words of Paul: What is he telling us?
Be kind We are supposed to treat others as we want to be treated. (Luke 6:31)
tenderhearted Sometimes, this is difficult to do. However, the Apostle Peter tells us to be compassionate toward each other, not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling. (1 Peter 3:8-9)
Forgiving We sometimes need to choose to forgive our Christian brother or sister and even those who aren’t. I admit, there are times this can be difficult. We must learn to forgive. When we forgive another person, we let go of our hurt. When we forgive, the action is for our good.
even as God, through Christ, forgave you.
When we forgive another person, we model Christ to them. That other person may remember what we did or how we acted at that time. It may bring them closer to Christ.
As I sit here thinking about how I could come across to those I meet, I realize that my thoughts are not always nice. I had an occasion to tell someone today that I was not happy with their phone tree. It told me a prescription for my husband would be ready this past Monday. Today is Thursday and they still don’t have it. None of their other stores have that item either.
Sometimes, what I want to say to someone would come across as rude, angry and downright mean. I don’t mean to be that way but I get upset that things don’t go according to “clockwork”.
My one comment to her that brought a smile to her face was: “You need to put your phone tree in time out for telling lies.”
Please keep us in your prayers.
