Vengeance is not ours... · 2:35am Jun 13th, 2017

Vengeance is God's. He will repay- whether ultimately on the Day of Judgement or intermediately in this life... He can discipline your abusive boss, soften your angry parent. He can bring your ex to his knees or her senses. Forgiveness doesn't diminish justice; it just entrusts it to God. He guarantees the right retribution. We give too much or too little. But the God of justice has the precise prescription. (You'll get through this, by Max Lucado, chapter 11, pg. 116.

Justice is not left by the roadside by forgiving our enemies. It is entrusted to the Lord. "Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much depends on you live peaceably with all men. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, 'Vengeance is Mine; I will repay,' says the Lord." (Rom. 12:17-19, NKJV.)

Holding a grudge is not worth it. It leaves a seed of a vile plant that grows to choke off growth in exchange for trying to make one's enemy, however intentional or unintentional their actions might be, as miserable or more miserable than one's self. And it's not just the Bible that preaches this message. A Chinese proverb states, "The man seeking revenge must dig two graves," with one of the two graves obviously being for the revenge-seeker. And works such as Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, are centered around characters such as Captain Ahab, who are not only willing to risk their own destruction, but that of the people under them, just to trade tit for tat. The results are not worth cost, spiritually, emotionally, mentally, or physically. And, historically speaking, there are numerous times that a quest for revenge blinded one side or the other and led them to ruin, sometimes at relatively little cost to their enemies.

No, it's not easy to let go. I have an image of someone I've clashed heads with that seems to mock me in my mind every time I fail or get angry or upset. It's difficult for me to let go of the anguish and the hurt that has lead to this problem. But I do try. Most of the time, I'm able to hope that I can just let it go. The anger does come back every now and again. But I hope I am successful in this struggle to throw off this problem. And I hope others are even more successful.

May God go with you all, and I wish you all a great summer