"For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God" Romans 3:23
I heard something a few months ago. I should have been listening a little bit more than I was. One of my good friends confessed something to his grandmother. The subject matter in which he discussed with his grandmother was a very private and personal issue so I will not divulge that information here. BUT her response was one of complete and utter love. She said, " I love the sinner, not the sin". WOW. She completely accepted him, who he was and what he told her. She did not accept the sin, but the sinner.
So many times, I have been unforgivable but those who truly love me have forgiven me. We all mess up. Because I am a born-again Christian, I believe that my sins are covered by the blood that was shed by Jesus. Having said that, when people sin against ME, I should just forgive them. Whether they ask for my forgiveness or not.
My entire life I have never ever wanted people to be mad at me. Even, which this is terribly hypocritical, those people who I did not necessarily like or even want to be around. I could not stand, still can not stand, to think that someone might think ill of me. I have learned, in the last 8 months, that no matter what, people are going to dislike me for one reason or another. And even if I did absolutely nothing to warrant those feelings, they will still dislike me. Now it does not help that people have lied about me, spread rumors about me and said some really maliscious things about me. I know without all of those things, I still will not able to be everyone's favorite person.
Which brings me to my point (finally huh). When people dislike me, when they sin against me, I should take Jesus and use Him as an example. Forever forgiving me, forever loving me, forever accepting me for who I am. I should just forgive, even those who are not apologetic or even admit to any wrong .I should love people, despite the fact that they dont love or show love towards me. I should accept everyone, no matter if they dont believe what I believe, or think like I think, or if they listen to *gasp* country music and ONLY country music! I dont have to believe how they believe, or even accept their way of thinking. We are all children of God. We are all seeking the same thing. Love and acceptance. Why should I, who desperately wants everyone to think that she is awesome and fun and loving and happy, not give everyone, no matter who they are, the same courtesy. I dont have to be everyone's best friend. I dont even have to be everyone's friend. I just need to be friendLY. Show the love of Christ to everyone I meet, everyone I know.
People will disappoint you. That is a proven fact. Just like it is a proven fact that we will disappoint God. But time and time again God forgives us. So time and time again I should forgive others. Should I forget the wrongs done against me? Not always. By not forgetting, you protect yourself from future hurt. Trusting people and forgiving them are two entirely different things.
Today I will take the advice of my friend's grandmother. I will love the sinner, just not the sin. I will accept those people who have wronged me and are wronging me. I will be nice to everyone I meet. Because the golden rule is still the golden rule. I want people to be nice to me. They wont always be, but I will always try to be nice to them.
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