Offending a Brother
Luke17: 3, “Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.”
Morning! Awaking to a new day! Breathe in the fresh air along with fresh feelings. Daily we go through our feelings of being wronged at some point in our lives. Some people have more times than they wish to remember. Especially those who were bullied; by classmates, friends, co-workers; even family. In many cases you had to become stronger than the offense. Many times you were the observant one; always seeing the wrong, but not standing up for that person, in fear of being brought into the same torture. But, the gist of it is, the bullied are better in numbers! Taking the stand helps you to achieve courage. It allows others to know there are those who feel your pain too! A little encouragement is like a round of applause. Those who are degrading others will, in due time, reap what they have sowed. Most bullies are formed at home where they are bullied, ignored, abused. Even the rich, who thrive on bragging of their possessions, have no real home life. They long for family with hugs, high fives, congrats, time spent with them. When we gossip about or ridicule anyone; rich, poor, middle class, fat, thin, ugly, pretty; we have offended God. He sees all, knows all, made all. His rewards become absent because we disobeyed. His sorrow becomes great because we forgot, or refused to love others as He loved us. We shouldn’t love someone because of what they are, who they are, what they have; but because God made them just like he made us! If we were all the same we would be robots! Our uniqueness is our gift from God! The next time someone takes time to make you feel inadequate; stop, breathe, then smile big and say thank you! Tell them God sees your ugliness but still loves you! Know that in that moment you have overcome the biggest obstacle on your journey! Just think of the reward God has waiting! If you see someone being offended, step up and kindly encourage them to keep going; they only need to please God! Take time to remember what the consequences are when you offend your brother! I’d rather receive rewards!
Scriptures:
Read: Matthew 18:6-7, 15-16, John 4:11-12, Proverbs 18:1-24, I John 13:34-35, I Corinthians 8:12-13, Mark 9:42, I Peter 5:6-10, Luke 17:1-4, Matthew 5:22-25, Proverbs 19:11, Matthew 5:38-42, Galatians 5:19-26, I Corinthians 13:4-7, James 1:19-20, Proverbs 17:9, Hebrews 12:14-15, Ephesians 4:13-15, Matthew 6:14-15, II Corinthians 12:10, Ecclesiastes 7:20-22, I John 5:4-5, II Thessalonians 2:2-3, I Peter 2:21-24, II Timothy 2:22-26, Proverbs 16:18-32
Prayer:
Lord, thank you for creating me just as I am, with all the quirks and imperfections! Thank you for guiding us every day to live as Jesus did, seeing the inside of someone and not the outside! Help us Lord to see the bullied and come to their aid. Help us Lord to forgive those who mock and pray without ceasing for their souls to become saved. Teach us continually to love our brothers, sisters, just as they are. Amen.