Wrestling with God: The Series…Politics of Life

The deed is done and it stabs me through the heart.

Their choices and actions stab and scrape against my soul. I cannot change their choices, all I can do is deal with the aftermath. Indignation rings and bounces in my heart and soul.

“No one should act like this. Especially a fellow brother or sister in Christ.”

However it is done. I am in no position to right this wrong. I have no recourse. I must go to God. So I cling to Him through the pain of apparent hypocrisy. The pain of sinful people making sinful choices that crush my trusting heart.

Do I throw it all away? Do I say this Christian life isn’t worth it because these Christian people do not act as God has told them to act?

No instead I cling to the giver of grace. To the source of the grace I need for the forgiveness of my sin. I cling to Him and plead my case with Him. I wait for Him to remind me that I am sinful too. That often I act the hypocrite.

As God births forgiveness in my heart, I begin to wrestle with how do I love this difficult person? How does it look like to bless those who have apparently been cursing me? How does God want me to live as my raw soul heals, but my mind is now wise. How does being as shrewd as a serpent and as gentle as a dove translate into a life that must be lived with people who appear to be at war with you?

I do not have the answers, but I cling to God. I cling to Him and pray that He gives me words and actions as I encounter those who have apparently turned on me. I trust Him to do the loving, grace-filled thing through me. I pray for wisdom as life is filled with difficult relationships.

What do you do when you encounter difficult people that you must maintain a relationship with?

The winner of my $50 Amazon Gift Card is….Daniel. Please e-mail me with the e-mail address to which you want me to send your gift card. Congratulations! I used the random name selector found here.

Remember this Friday I will be giving you bloggers an opportunity to link up with a post of your own about Wrestling with God.