"Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets.
But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you,
Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you."
Luke 6:26-28
This is one of the hardest things that God asks us to do in life, and yet, especially lately, I feel like it is the one and only thing that will really make a difference in the world. Usually we desperately want everyone to like us and speak well of us. And loving people who love us can already be challenging. Loving people who hate us... wow, that's tough. And not just hate, but those who curse us, who despitefully use us... that just rubs us the wrong way. It feels like losing, or knuckling under... being a doormat or something. What it actually is though, is obedience and humility, and neither of those things are weak. They require the most important kind of strength and faith.
Letting go of our need for constant approval from others helps us rely more on the Lord, and loving people who hate us is some serious next-level love. We might be able to get closer to understanding God's perspective if we try some of these suggestions that stretch us towards that type of love. It can be a mental exercise at first, to help us get used to the idea, but practicing in real life too can help. For instance, being nice to people in traffic can be an opportunity to grow. :) Or just letting people be wrong on the internet maybe. Eventually, we might move on to actually trying to see things from someone else's perspective, and to loving people who have philosophies and beliefs that we do not share.
Today, let's try to stretch ourselves and make more room in our hearts for people that we don't currently like. This assignment is inherently difficult, but God wouldn't ask it if it were impossible. He can help us see people as his children, and understand the love that he has for all of us, if we ask and learn from him.
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