November 17, 2024
“Truly God is good to Israel, to those whose hearts are pure.”
~ Psalm 73:1 (NIV) ~
BEING OFFENDED
When former Pittsburgh Steeler Lynn Swann achieved the pinnacle of success for every NFL player when he was voted into the Hall of Fame he used his induction speech to say some things that had been on his mind for a long time.
The reason he wasn’t voted in sooner, he explained to the audience, was the fault of Terry Bradshaw (the Steelers quarterback). “Bradshaw did not seem like he wanted to throw the ball in my direction,” he said. “He has four Super Bowl rings ... but could he read secondaries? I doubt it. What made Bradshaw decide not to throw more passes at the end of my career, I have no idea, no idea.”
Isn’t that a shame? Instead of using the day to enjoy the honor that was due him he used it to unleash pent-up anger.
Many people go through their lives hanging on to hurts. Unfortunately, I have known too many pastors who are still nursing wounds from pastorates long, long ago. They say, along with David...
“Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence.”
~ Psalm 73:13 (NIV) ~
There’s a way to deal with resentment and hurt. Dwelling on it, talking about it, reliving it isn’t the solution. Looking for ways to get even isn’t the solution. But I’ll tell you what has worked for me. When I find myself reliving past hurts (and sometimes they date back to the 70’s) this is what I remind myself to do.
Don’t talk about it. Most of us have been told that talking about such things will help with the “healing process” but in my case it only makes things worse. The less I talk about offences, the easier it is to get through them.
Do pray about it. I ask God to change my heart, and I ask him to pour blessings on whoever it is I resent.
Look for a chance to do good. I heard of one pastor who sends a check each year to a contentious church he served years ago. It’s a step towards saying “I regret the hard feelings that developed between us.”
Most of all, Let it go. We have to make a conscious decision: “I am not going to hang on to that any longer.” Sometimes we may have to “let it go” 10, 15, 20 times a day. However many times it takes, keep doing it until it works.
Resentment isn’t worth it. Hanging on to hurts won’t help those hurts heal any faster but it will rob you of joy today. Let it go.
Because: “Truly God is good to Israel, to those whose hearts are pure.” ~ Psalm 73:1 (NLT) ~
Blessings on your week as you consider how God is good to you and how we can choose to live in that love every day. I am looking forward to worshipping with you all this coming Sunday. I will be closing my sermons series, IMMOVABLE with THE CHAOS OF CONFLICT.
Pastor Terrell
Last chance this weekend to make a difference in the life of a child through Operation Christmas Child
ScheduleforSunday,November17,2024:
The Saints Class
Ruth Class @ 9:00
Prayer Room open
Preschool Worship opens Sunday Morning Worship
Kidz4Christ dismissed to Schedulefortherestoftheweek:
Tuesday@ 10:00
Wednesday@ 6:20 @ 6:30
Thursday@ 6:00
Morning Worship
