With A Grain of Salt…

Tiptoeing in Vengeance Spawns into Rage ~

Sadly it seems every single day I am seeing a person I genuinely love fall into the temptation of vengeance, for their cause of “Being right.”  They often stand on the principle; to right a wrong, however heartfelt and genuine that may be…  I keep seeing them in the Spirit, standing on a cliff ready to slip, sending chills up my spine.  My heart longs to love them back to solid ground, but for some reason they cannot hear my call, nor can they hear Jesus’s love call at the moment.  He is attentively awaiting their calling out to Him.

Vengeance is a very dangerous game at the moment.  The Lord blessed us with His road map in this life, the Bible, which leads us to still waters and green pastures.  In It He teaches us to never repay evil for evil.  In other words, He knows we have been hurt in our lives – some of us deeply wounded and if those wounds are not released and healed by Him, we will carry with us those wounds for many, many years until one day, we loose all sense of control.

Most recently in Florida, we saw what brokenness can do; when it turns into vengeance, walked out in rage, by that precious young man in Florida who took the lives of 17 innocent victims – 15 being children no less.  In just a few minutes of time, lives were shattered for hundreds of hearts, like a ripple on a lake which cannot be held back.   No one can turn back time and I just imagine if this boy were given the chance, he would turn back time.  It was no coincidence that this young man picked LOVE day to send his last cry out, “No one loves me.”  I pray for him constantly.

I cried often a few days ago, imagining the shattering of a Mother’s heart for her child, innocent and vulnerable, taken so soon before life really began.  The fear of loving too much is seared into a mother’s heart.  Lord have mercy is all I can utter when the ache seems to much to bare.  I was noticing the different responses by the variety of people who stepped to the microphone to speak over the course of the past few days.

All were broken…  Most were crying…  Many were questioning the why’s and I must admit I have that question myself…  Compassion was on the lips of the majority who speak of this tragedy…

However, what I really noticed was the defining line between who was, “Truly broken, calling out for help,” and those who were “Truly broken, seeking to repay evil with evil, insuring punishment and vengeance prevailed.”  It is really upsetting to see this all play out.  I kept asking myself – Can’t they see it was vengeance turned into rage that drove him to such a madden state to kill a life, any life – not the ones who hurt him even?  The enemy had entered into him because he was so broken, he was taken over to the point he lusted to shed innocent blood.  Not one of those innocent victims had inflicted pain on him, but if one tiptoes in vengeance long enough they most certainly will become full of rage on a path to shedding innocent blood, as well.

I am giving my all right now not to worry.  I have a deepened level of concern for anyone who is angry at the moment, acting out of frustration that cannot be taken back as we say and do things we later will regret.  This is not to say we don’t all get frustrated or upset at times, but rather what do we do with these emotions when they come upon us?  Can we hold our tongues until Jesus purifies our hearts again?  Can we forgive, release and bless those who spitefully use us, withhold love or do not want to hear us?  Or do we stay in a state of frustration for hours, days, weeks or even years, leading us down a path of vengeance?

Just give it all to Jesus.  He is enough.

With A Grain of Salt… 

     This means you can take it or leave it.  This is my heart on the matter, so to speak.?

Please, time is just too short to be holding anyone to a standard as high as yours.  We live in such a spiritually volatile season right now and we need the covering of Jesus more than ever.  Sowing and reaping, in some cases, is practically instantaneous.   We may not mean to hurt another permanently, but in this time it is best not to gamble on reaping later, what was just sown now.  Especially, just to be heard and just to be right.  I keep getting stern warnings to walk out what we talk, as we simply BE LOVE, rather than speaking of it.  Nothing is worth losing our souls over, nothing.  If something is causing you to sin, pluck it out immediately and especially if what you are doing hurts another person in any form or fashion. 

Our Father is Sovereign. 

Glorify Him, avoiding all appearances of evil and the glorifying of it. 

Guard your eyes and ears and choose wisely the well from which you drink.  

Come Lord Jesus, Come…

                        In His Love? Angela ~ Marked By Heaven