TDW 09-11-08 Transform Your Enemies

From: The Word Among Us
(Transform Your Enemies)

Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. (Luke 6:27-28)

On this day—the seventh anniversary of the terrorist attacks in the United States—Jesus’ advice may seem incredibly naïve and impractical. How can people forgive such monstrous acts of hatred and violence? Doesn’t such weakness set them up for further disasters?

But Jesus was not naïve. His parents had to flee a paranoid despot so that he could survive infancy, and he lived and worked under brutal Roman rule. His advice to turn the other cheek wasn’t a prudent way of staying out of trouble. Rather, it was a practical way of releasing the transforming power of God’s love into the world. That love is far more potent than the impact that leveled the World Trade Center in New York City.

We’ve all heard about people who found the grace to forgive their children’s murderer, in some cases even bringing them to conversion. Not every story finds this kind of resolution—at least not this side of heaven. But choosing to love is always better for the victim than huddling in a prison of bitterness, rehearsing vengeful schemes.

So don’t give way to vengeance or fear. Rather, try to comfort and support anyone who has borne personal grief and loss, no matter what the cause. Let’s all pray for our enemies, both near and far. And let’s try hard to understand those whose race or religion tempt us to consider them a threat to us.

Is there someone whom you have a hard time loving? Is it possible that you could learn more about an acquaintance whose religion, cultural upbringing, or even hobbies and interests are very unfamiliar to you? Could you take the first small step toward reconciling with a neighbor or family member who hasn’t spoken to you in years? Can you look beyond another’s unshaven face, heavy makeup, or agitated behavior and see the person God loves as much as he loves you? Yes, you can! Jesus is with you, and he can shine his light into the darkest of places!

”Father, I don’t understand why there is so much hostility in the world, but please drain the residue of hatred from my own heart. Lord, make me a channel through which your love can touch others.”