Light of Life
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Jeremiah 20:11 KJV
But the LORD is with me as a mighty terrible one: therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail: they shall be greatly ashamed; for they shall not prosper: their everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten.
John 8:12
Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."
I know these two passages don’t seem related. You know how I am, though! They make sense to me as a single lesson—and I’m speaking only for myself here! I read Jeremiah first, and thought it seemed a little harsh. Actually I got the feeling I have had in the past, when I have been harmed or had my feelings hurt, or just downright stabbed in the back. It’s a very human feeling, but one I am ashamed of: they’ll get what’s coming to them. More than that, I’ve actually wished them to be harmed in some way. It wasn’t conscious, I don’t think. But I carried grudges for years and years!
The verse from John tells us that we really shouldn’t do that. As long as we have Jesus, we don’t need to be concerned about how others treat us, what they think of us, or whether they do and don’t get “what’s coming to them!” In Christ, it’s none of our business. In Christ, we only focus on our own souls, and then we immediately forgive the other. We don’t carry it around inside, and we don’t let it eat away at us. We certainly don’t wish the other ill. Rather than expending all our time with negative thoughts, we model Christ to others. We shine His light into the world to shatter the darkness, to minister to others in this fallen and sin-filled world.
We also beg forgiveness for harboring these feelings. They place a barrier between us and God. God is all-goodness and love. Anything counter to that is counter to God’s will for His people and for His world. I have found that the old adage, “what goes around comes around” is usually true. God takes care of what needs to be taken care of – or people dig themselves into their own hole – either through ignorance or disobedience. Sometimes people act as they do because of the hurts they experienced in their own lives. What better way to reverse the whole process than to openly and intentionally forgive them, tell them how they harmed you, and that you do forgive them.
It doesn’t matter if they respond positively. What matters is that you are shining the light of Christ. The rest is up to them – and to God! Often the offending party doesn’t respond positively, because of embarrassment, or because they just aren’t able to admit they were wrong. It’s okay. Again, the task at hand is to do what you need to do. I’m writing this for myself as much as anyone else! I have some issues with past coworkers that I find rising to the surface on occasion and I am working hard to let go of the circumstances and situations that continue to be an issue for me. I know it’s not easy. It’s very challenging to do the right thing. But we are not alone. We have Jesus to be our light, our strength, our comfort and our goodness.
My prayer today is that you lean on Jesus for all the struggles in your life. And that you shine His light into the world as you go about your day.
Mary
