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< August, 2004 >
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Peace
There is no one who reads this who has not been in the same place, because we are all human beings who, by definition, are governed by our imperfect human nature; and it is natural for us to fight back when attacked, to defend ourselves when we feel wrongly accused, and vindictively to want to get even when we are hurt. Yes, it is natural, and it is understandable, but it is wrong. I know it is wrong, and yet right now I am having an extremely difficult time gaining control over my emotions and giving up my feelings of bitterness and resentment. Indeed, on my own, I am finding it is impossible for me to do so. It seems like the best I can do is to cover up my wrong thoughts and hurt feelings and to try to forget them, so that I can go on more or less normally with my daily life. In other words, instead of dealing with my feelings and resolving them, it is easier to suppress them, to stuff them down inside, where they accumulate and fester, and eventually can lead to depression, broken relationships, emotional illness, and, in the extreme, even to murder and suicide. Clearly, this is not the way to peace, either outwardly or within. Now if this is the way we people live individually in our relations with each other -- with our spouses, with our neighbors, with our business associates, and with our friends and enemies -- and very often I think that it is, what hope is there for peace in the world between large groups of people, that is between different religions, and races, and nations? Why should we expect such efforts as the United Nations to work any better than the League of Nations that preceded it, when the real problem, and the solution to it, lies within the hearts of individual men and women? Since I seem to be powerless to change my own heart, what am I to do, and where am I to go for help? Well, fortunately, God is acquainted with my dilemma, which is, of course, a result of my own sin; and in his love and mercy, he sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to show you and me how we are supposed to live. No one else has ever been more betrayed, more wrongfully accused, more misunderstood, or more massively hurt than he, and yet he never once returned evil for evil, but only love. Indeed, and incredibly, he took all the world's sin and suffering upon himself on the cross, and with the words "Forgive them" on his lips, he died, thereby paying our debt and setting us free from our guilt. Then he rose from the dead, conquering death and forever freeing us from its sting. And then he ascended into heaven, so that his Holy Spirit could come and dwell in each of our hearts, thereby enabling us to live the way he lived. All we have to do is to want to change, and to choose his way, and then to be willing to give up our own way. I made that choice at a Billy Graham Crusade almost 50 years ago, and I know well the rich blessings that are poured out on anyone who honestly tries to live his life for him, instead of for himself. Yet, there are still many times, though less frequent now than when I was younger, when I slip back into my old ways, and it becomes necessary to make that choice anew, because it is not possible for my heart to be filled with him, and also with bitterness and resentment, both at the same time. When I look at it like that, it suddenly is not a hard choice to make at all. With his help, what was impossible for me to do by myself (to change my heart), becomes the simplest and easiest thing imaginable. All I have to do is ask.
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Contributed by Stephen B. Elmer |
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