Friday, March 7 Romans 12:21

Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good.

JESUS WANTS US TO BE KIND

“You can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar.” “Kill `em with kindness.” “Turn the other cheek.” “Fight fire with fire.” “Eye for an eye.” “Mess around and find out.”

I`ve heard these quotes many times over the years from parents, grandparents, teachers and friends. I`m sure I`ve passed this “wisdom” on to my kids at some point too. These statements reflect the multitude of ways that we can address how we are treated by someone or something. It`s our choice how we handle a situation — we can choose kindness or we can choose to fight.

Unfortunately it`s not hard to look out into the current world we live in and see plenty of evil going on around us. It comes in many forms and doesn`t always have a name tag to let us know that`s what it is. Subtle racist comments. Side-eye after sharing an opinion. Gossip at the water cooler. Cyber bullying. Other times it`s obvious: Someone with a very strong opinion who`s not afraid to call you names or tell you how wrong you are or how much you don`t belong gets right in your face and lets you have it. I know we can blame a lot of stuff like this on the internet — nameless, faceless individuals spewing hate with little to no consequence on an online platform — but this type of thing was going on long before the advent of technology.

I`m pretty sure Jesus dealt with this most days of his life. He was hated, misunderstood, left out, condemned and ultimately lost his life — all to overcome evil! Like most of us, I`m sure he may have had moments when he lost his cool, but on the whole, he chose to overcome evil with good. To find the best in people and situations. To operate out of love and kindness, not hate and revenge. I don`t know about you, but as time goes on, I`m finding it harder and harder to do that. But one thing I know for sure — Jesus would want us to choose good.

So next time you encounter a bully or a gossip or just a really mean person, be nice to them. Not just for their benefit, but for yours. Don`t let them steal the good that exists in your heart — the good that Jesus put there.

Heavenly Father, give us strength and wisdom to fight our everyday battles with grace, with kindness, with compassion and with love. Amen

David Jowdy

[Yesterday |Lenten Index | Tomorrow]