THE TOUGH TRAIL
-
Get the Flash Player to see this player.
Scripture Reading: Proverbs 6:16-19
“Go and be reconciled …”
Matthew 5:24
Estranged relationships grieve the Lord deeply. “There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him,” says our reading for today. The climax of that list is “dissension in the community.” Of all the things that God finds abominable, dissension or discord is one of the worst. God created us to be in relationship first with him and secondly with one another. As a result, when our bond with someone is bruised or broken, we stand outside of the relationship of peace that the Lord wants for us.
Just before the apostle Paul described the fruit of the Spirit in his letter to the Galatians, he cited a number of attitudes and actions that come from our sinful nature. Among them are “discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy” (Galatians 5:20-21). Rather than creating peace, these habits and patterns of our old nature threaten to alienate us from our friends, our coworkers, and even our family.
Acting in humility, seeking forgiveness, burying pride, and reaching out to people who have hurt us is no easy task. Philip Keller wrote, “The path of peace … is a tough trail tramped out with humble heart and lowly spirit.” But that path is possible when we cooperate with the Holy Spirit in cultivating peace within us and in all our actions as an expression of God’s love.
Prayer
By your Spirit, Lord, help us to walk the often difficult path of peace. May we be agents of your grace in the lives of the people around us, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
Create an account to comment
GET TODAY
This particular topic breaks my heart…you see, my brother has broken all ties with the family. He is full of anger and will not tell us why. We have tried to contact him to reconcile, but this makes him angrier. I pray God will lead Christian people to him who can help him come to peace with himself, God and us. I do not see what other course of action has been left to us.
My ex-husband has tried so hard to ruin my life even though he has been remarried since 2002. When I got remarried in 2006 he was angry…the summer of 2007 he took our only child from me and I have not spoken with her for almost two years until recently when she called to say hi. He has since tried numerous things to make me look bad and ruin my life. Please pray for me, I need your prayers in these trying time. In addition I do hope that the lord will keep our teenage child safe from harm and danger and that he will come to realize that what he is doing is wrong and change his ways.
my father in - has refuse to talk to my wife and i since 3yrs ago we got married. he refused our gettin married sayin we are not of the same tribe. i keepin askin God to touch him and make in stop hating us for nothing. join me and pray for him let God touch his heart.