This may be common knowledge to everyone else. But, for me, this is a revelation that has been deepened in recent months. So, I'm writing it out here for the sake of personal reminder!
So, say I am in a situation where I have(in a moment of judgment or weakness) gone after someone else with my words…I can usually see my mistake with time…I seek and receive forgiveness for that…and I fully understand that somewhere in there, I made an agreement with my enemy about that person(God is not critical. If it is a critical thought, it didn't come from Him). I agreed with some lie about them that I heard whispered in my ear and maybe even in an effort to love them, I spoke it out without love and caused harm. I can see that. I can ask forgiveness and let go of that, knowing that was not actually my heart toward them. Not my true heart…the heart I have in Christ. I am one with Christ. ONE with Him. That is what scripture tells me.
The way I see it…fact and truth are not the same things in this situation.
Fact…it is a fact(in that instance) that I spoke words before praying. That I failed to take my concerns to Christ and ask how I could support my brother or sister in prayer. It is a fact that I took it upon myself to set them straight and play the role of "holy spirit jr" to them. I also failed to ASK Him if He wanted me to speak ANYTHING to them what so ever(sometimes He might have an encouraging word for them. Emphasis on encouraging.)
Truth(according to the Word)? The truth is I love them with the love of Christ. Christ in me can bring healing. Christ in me loves them. I can access that love even in rough moments. My humanity may take me on some “squirrelly" detours…but, that is where I will land every time so long as I remain in Him. So long as I stay open to what He has to say to me about that person. I know this to be true in my heart toward others!
However…reverse that(as an example of how we lose sight of that truth when we are on the receiving end)…let's say that one day...
However, if I stop…if I bring that moment under the blood of Christ and truly see it washed clean, odds are, I will see that this person has a love for me on some level…they were doing the best they could at that moment no matter what it looked like to me. I can trust Christ IN THEM. This person is a child of God, a reflection of His Glorious Image in some way and if I know them to be seeking His heart…well, then…I need to simply filter what I heard spoken over me through the Word…the truth…take it to Jesus and say “what is true here, Lord? What do YOU want me to learn here?” and then forgive, release, and move on.
Proverbs 26(ESV)
2 Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying,
a curse that is causeless does not alight.
a curse that is causeless does not alight.
It really is that simple(not that I always remember that right away, obviously)…It ONLY works that way IF we will take it to Him and ask those questions, standing on His truth(His definition of who we truly are) and realizing that most of the time people are *trying* to speak the truth in love on some level. Really. Very few people would actually set out to maliciously damage my heart(or yours). Whatever it looks like, you can trust the Spirit of Christ in them to lead them to a safe landing place. But, people are not infallible. Only Jesus is…He is the only Perfect One. He IS perfecting us, but that isn’t a destination we will reach on this side of Heaven.
And, in the end, what HE says about me is the ultimate definition of who I am. It’s all about who I belong to.
It's all about who WE belong to.
So…again lets reverse that…What they said is NOT who they are or Who they belong to…is it a fact that they said it? Yup. It may have even felt really lousy that they said it. But, the Truth is that Jesus lives in them and given time He will lead them to the same solid love for me that He led me to for them. HIS PRESENCE in their life is the truest thing about them. I’m holding on to that. I love my people entirely too much to do anything else.
