Life's too short to hang onto your grudge.
Let God take care of being the Judge.
Folks get mad and refuse to budge.
Our grudge becomes an ugly smudge.
Grudgen' and smudgen', and never budgen',
through life we be trudgen',
but it's God who should be doin' the judgen'.
Let God take care of being the Judge.
Folks get mad and refuse to budge.
Our grudge becomes an ugly smudge.
Grudgen' and smudgen', and never budgen',
through life we be trudgen',
but it's God who should be doin' the judgen'.
DAY SIX WORD
“Thou shalt not avenge,
nor bear any grudge
against the children of thy people,
but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself:
I am the Lord.”
Leviticus 19:18
nor bear any grudge
against the children of thy people,
but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself:
I am the Lord.”
Leviticus 19:18
DEEP THOUGHTS
On September 11, 2001, one of the worst terrorist attacks in America's history, took almost 3,000 lives. Many folks have a story about where they were when the news broke about the hate-fueled attacks. I was driving on the New York State Thruway on my way to Chautauqua High School to give a speech to the Freshman Class. As I heard the news on the radio, my first reaction was disbelief. I thought I was listening to a modern remake of Orson Welles "War of The Worlds." Reality didn't take long to hit home.
The shortness of our lives is what I thought about as my speedometer pushed past 65 miles per hour. Many things in my life at that point were in disarray and were causing me a lot of emotional pain. One of them was a business breakup that deposited some unforgiving grudge in my gut. There's no way to describe adequately what happened next. The grudge of unforgiveness became like a weight on my shoulders. I was aware of its heaviness, but then suddenly it was lifted off. I literally felt my body being pushed up toward the roof of my van. The release was so powerful, I smiled as tears formed around the edges of my eyes. God had pulled from me what I could not release myself. I was freed from my grudge!
The 19th chapter of Leviticus is God's lesson on how to be holy. In the second verse we read, "Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the Lord your God am holy." The 18th verse is at the midway point and is one of the most important ingredients of holiness. So important in fact, that Jesus quotes the verse when he's asked by religious scholars to tell them what the greatest commandment is. In Matthew 22:37-40, Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18; "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” I noticed that God is prefacing his remarks about loving your neighbor with some good advice about not holding onto a grudge. How can a heart have love when it's holding a grudge?
People will do you wrong, intentionally and unintentionally. Even if they offend you on purpose, I could make the case that they still don't know what they're doing. As guilty people hung His innocence on a cross in a gruesome humiliation, He responded in humility, grace, mercy, compassion and love as He said; “Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34
Life's too short to hold onto grudges and thoughts about retaliation. Let God take care of business. He always does in the end. “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” Romans 12:19 Let your end be free from vengeful thoughts. Let your now be filled with humility, grace, mercy, compassion and Love. Removing unforgiveness requires God's help. Give your grudge removal projects to Him with a sincere heart and He won't let you down. On the contrary, he might lift you up when driving on life's highways!
The shortness of our lives is what I thought about as my speedometer pushed past 65 miles per hour. Many things in my life at that point were in disarray and were causing me a lot of emotional pain. One of them was a business breakup that deposited some unforgiving grudge in my gut. There's no way to describe adequately what happened next. The grudge of unforgiveness became like a weight on my shoulders. I was aware of its heaviness, but then suddenly it was lifted off. I literally felt my body being pushed up toward the roof of my van. The release was so powerful, I smiled as tears formed around the edges of my eyes. God had pulled from me what I could not release myself. I was freed from my grudge!
The 19th chapter of Leviticus is God's lesson on how to be holy. In the second verse we read, "Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the Lord your God am holy." The 18th verse is at the midway point and is one of the most important ingredients of holiness. So important in fact, that Jesus quotes the verse when he's asked by religious scholars to tell them what the greatest commandment is. In Matthew 22:37-40, Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18; "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” I noticed that God is prefacing his remarks about loving your neighbor with some good advice about not holding onto a grudge. How can a heart have love when it's holding a grudge?
People will do you wrong, intentionally and unintentionally. Even if they offend you on purpose, I could make the case that they still don't know what they're doing. As guilty people hung His innocence on a cross in a gruesome humiliation, He responded in humility, grace, mercy, compassion and love as He said; “Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34
Life's too short to hold onto grudges and thoughts about retaliation. Let God take care of business. He always does in the end. “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” Romans 12:19 Let your end be free from vengeful thoughts. Let your now be filled with humility, grace, mercy, compassion and Love. Removing unforgiveness requires God's help. Give your grudge removal projects to Him with a sincere heart and He won't let you down. On the contrary, he might lift you up when driving on life's highways!
DAY SIX PRAYER
Thank You God for lifting us up
When we're weighed down with unforgiving baggage.
Your Son set us free from guilt.
He took our weight of sin upon His innocent shoulders.
Help us God to be holy ln the same way.
Your Word tells us
To turn the other cheek
And go the extra mile.
Only by the grace found in You
Can we possibly do those things.
Help us to live one day of forgiveness at a time.
One act of grace.
One act of mercy.
One act of humility.
One act of compassion.
One act of Love.
Breathe on us O Breath of God.
With one breath you can lift us
Into a sudden moment of beautiful forgiveness.
Not by our might O Lord,
But by Your power.
In Jesus Name.
Amen
When we're weighed down with unforgiving baggage.
Your Son set us free from guilt.
He took our weight of sin upon His innocent shoulders.
Help us God to be holy ln the same way.
Your Word tells us
To turn the other cheek
And go the extra mile.
Only by the grace found in You
Can we possibly do those things.
Help us to live one day of forgiveness at a time.
One act of grace.
One act of mercy.
One act of humility.
One act of compassion.
One act of Love.
Breathe on us O Breath of God.
With one breath you can lift us
Into a sudden moment of beautiful forgiveness.
Not by our might O Lord,
But by Your power.
In Jesus Name.
Amen
Author's Note: This article is part of a 21-day Series called, "YWAP Fast 2019." Each year, the YWAP Directors and countless other folks begin the New Year on a 21 Day Fast. We set aside extra time to honor God and seek His will for the New Year. This series will eventually be written in book form as a model to teach future YWAP generations. We welcome your comments or questions. Jesus loves you and so do we.
For more information about how you can become a YWAP supporter and volunteer, please leave a message or call us at 716-830-8240. Thanks for your time. Go do something nice for somebody. Jesus loves you and so do we. #ywapbuffalo #ywap4God #ywap716 #JLYASDW
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