Saturday, May 31, 2014

It Won't Get Better If You Are Bitter

My Utmost For His Highest
 
‘Our Lord never put His trust in any person. Yet He was never suspicious, never bitter, and never lost hope for anyone, because He put His trust in God first. He trusted absolutely in what God’s grace could do for others. If I put my trust in human beings first, the end result will be my despair and hopelessness toward everyone. I will become bitter because I have insisted that people be what no person can ever be— absolutely perfect and right. […] Am I allowing my natural life to be slowly transformed by the indwelling life of the Son of God? God’s ultimate purpose is that His Son might be exhibited in me.’ CHAMBERS
 
“Who can I trust?” I have asked that question many times while serving in Haiti.  It is hard to know … There is a Haitian proverb, "Bèl dan pa vle di zanmi: dan pa kè."  (Nice teeth do not mean friends: teeth are not the heart.) Another way of saying that is “just because they smile does not reveal the heart”  I have never met a used car salesman who did not smile when he greeted me … So often because people appear to be friendly we ascribe qualities to them that they have not yet proven to be theirs.  When we discover that those qualities are absent, we soon have a bitter attitude towards those people.
 
That is not to say that no one can be trusted .. but that we must not become bitter when some are found not to be trustworthy … who they seem to be.  The Bible helps us understand the sinful nature .. but it also helps us understand God’s grace and mercy … While we should not expect people to be perfect … we should also remember that Jesus went to the cross for them.  That “all have sinned” and God loves the world .. even those people who disappoint us.  On a final note … remember that bitterness is more painful for the one who has it than it is for the one who caused it.  Bottom line .. bitterness is a sin .. you need to confess it and move on. Just sayin’
 
Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

No comments: