Luke 6:27, 28
Last week someone broke into our minivan. Apparently, it’s not wise to leave your GPS in the window overnight. I apologize for the sarcasm but it was a chintzy GPS and I thought I lived in a pretty safe neighborhood. I should have left the doors unlocked so they could have just taken it. Instead they threw a brick through the window doing even more damage to the interior of the car.
The next morning when I discovered what happened I felt violated and angry. How dare they! I didn’t care that much about the GPS I was resenting the time and money it would cost getting the van back into working order.
I had busy day waiting for me. After the police came I began cleaning up the mess. The more I cleaned, the angrier I became. I began thinking about what I would like to do to the person or people who did this. I was hoping that the police would catch them so I could let them have it in court. Maybe the judge would let me throw a brick through the window of their car!
As I was kneeling on the ground sweeping up glass I felt the Holy Spirit say, “Pray for them.” I quickly ignored the Spirit’s leading and continued to sweep and fume. As the prompting grew I finally relented and said a prayer as I swept and almost came to tears on my knees in my driveway.
I share this story with you because I needed to be reminded that I can’t pray for someone and hate them at the same time. We all need to be reminded to pray for our enemies. When we pray God’s love replaces our hate. Who do you need to pray for today?
