** Warning-After I wrote this, I reread it and it jumps to all different topics. My heart was all over the place so my writing is too. Sorry, it is a difficult read, but not sorry I wrote it. That's why I didn't fix it.
The dictionary says that bitter means: "(of people or their feelings or behavior) angry, hurt, or resentful because of one's bad experiences or a sense of unjust treatment." For months the Lord has been making this word stand out to me. I don't believe I am bitter, although I once was. He has been teaching me things on bitterness and has opened my eyes to how it manifests in people. Marah is a word used often in the bible to mean bitter. Naomi told people to call her Mara in the book of Ruth because she was bitter over the deaths of her sons and husband. The Israelites named a place Marah because the water they got from there was bitter. You know what happened? In both cases, the Lord helped them overcome the 'bitter" in their lives. Mara later returned to being called Naomi(which means pleasant) after Boaz married Ruth and gave her family. The Lord showed Moses a tree to dip in the water at Marah and made it sweet so that they could drink it.
I don't believe that people want to be bitter. It is something that happens from situations and thoughts and it just overtakes us. And once you are in it, it takes healing and time to dig out of it. It manifests in all different ways. It makes us judgmental. It makes us condemning. Anger and spitefulness take over. We turn our backs or lash out at people who have always been there for us. Some people isolate themselves and others run and cling to groups of people they know they shouldn't. When I was bitter I tended to look down my nose at people who, for some stupid reason, I thought I was better than. Really it was just me covering up insecurities in myself. The Lord has taught me compassion(still working on it!) and grace. He has taught me that I am worthy BUT so is everyone else. I used to be so hard core politically conservative and yelled it from the rooftops. Now, I am still considered conservative but I had much more yell the sweet name of Jesus to people. I want to yell love and grace and compassion. And example of this happened last week. People were all in an uproar over the family from Texas who cut off life support to their wife/daughter and therefore the baby that she was carrying died as well. I don't have a side in it. Yes, I am against abortion. This was a crazy case with all kids of crazy factors. My side is this: I want to hug the man. He not only lost his wife but the child they were preparing to raise together. Do you think this was easy for him? The grief! The loss! The life flipped upside down! He is now left to raise a toddler alone(her parents are helping.). It breaks my heart. It the midst of people picking sides and yelling about right and wrong, everyone missed that this man just need some love and compassion. I just imagine Jesus sitting in Heaven shaking his head and screaming for someone to go love this man. Oh how we have missed the mark. In the midst of us missing the mark, Christians have become more and more bitter. When Christians are bitter, what are we showing the world? Why would they want to know our beautiful Savior if all they see of him is anger and spitefullness. I am still a work in progress. I mess up daily on showing it. I have to go apologize to people on a regular basis for being just plain dumb and holding back grace I should so freely give. I pray daily that Jesus let me ooze Him and his compassion to others. I want to take that whole "Let them see what I am for not what I am against" stand. I believe when I show love to others I kill bitterness. It doesn't give it time to take root and overcome me. My mentality becomes more about others and less about Haley. And guess what?? I don't have to agree with people to wrap them in Jesus's love. I won't sugar coat sin but I will remember that as soon as I leave grace out of law, I have attempted to diminish the power of the Holy blood of Jesus. He came and fulfilled the law and I don't want to scream that people are in sin without showing them that God didn't want to leave them there. He wanted to meet them RIGHT WHERE THEY ARE. He will come and help them walk out of their sin. Just like He daily helps me walk out of mine. Oh my merciful Jesus, take out bitterness and help me walk in compassion and breath grace every day.
The dictionary says that bitter means: "(of people or their feelings or behavior) angry, hurt, or resentful because of one's bad experiences or a sense of unjust treatment." For months the Lord has been making this word stand out to me. I don't believe I am bitter, although I once was. He has been teaching me things on bitterness and has opened my eyes to how it manifests in people. Marah is a word used often in the bible to mean bitter. Naomi told people to call her Mara in the book of Ruth because she was bitter over the deaths of her sons and husband. The Israelites named a place Marah because the water they got from there was bitter. You know what happened? In both cases, the Lord helped them overcome the 'bitter" in their lives. Mara later returned to being called Naomi(which means pleasant) after Boaz married Ruth and gave her family. The Lord showed Moses a tree to dip in the water at Marah and made it sweet so that they could drink it.
I don't believe that people want to be bitter. It is something that happens from situations and thoughts and it just overtakes us. And once you are in it, it takes healing and time to dig out of it. It manifests in all different ways. It makes us judgmental. It makes us condemning. Anger and spitefulness take over. We turn our backs or lash out at people who have always been there for us. Some people isolate themselves and others run and cling to groups of people they know they shouldn't. When I was bitter I tended to look down my nose at people who, for some stupid reason, I thought I was better than. Really it was just me covering up insecurities in myself. The Lord has taught me compassion(still working on it!) and grace. He has taught me that I am worthy BUT so is everyone else. I used to be so hard core politically conservative and yelled it from the rooftops. Now, I am still considered conservative but I had much more yell the sweet name of Jesus to people. I want to yell love and grace and compassion. And example of this happened last week. People were all in an uproar over the family from Texas who cut off life support to their wife/daughter and therefore the baby that she was carrying died as well. I don't have a side in it. Yes, I am against abortion. This was a crazy case with all kids of crazy factors. My side is this: I want to hug the man. He not only lost his wife but the child they were preparing to raise together. Do you think this was easy for him? The grief! The loss! The life flipped upside down! He is now left to raise a toddler alone(her parents are helping.). It breaks my heart. It the midst of people picking sides and yelling about right and wrong, everyone missed that this man just need some love and compassion. I just imagine Jesus sitting in Heaven shaking his head and screaming for someone to go love this man. Oh how we have missed the mark. In the midst of us missing the mark, Christians have become more and more bitter. When Christians are bitter, what are we showing the world? Why would they want to know our beautiful Savior if all they see of him is anger and spitefullness. I am still a work in progress. I mess up daily on showing it. I have to go apologize to people on a regular basis for being just plain dumb and holding back grace I should so freely give. I pray daily that Jesus let me ooze Him and his compassion to others. I want to take that whole "Let them see what I am for not what I am against" stand. I believe when I show love to others I kill bitterness. It doesn't give it time to take root and overcome me. My mentality becomes more about others and less about Haley. And guess what?? I don't have to agree with people to wrap them in Jesus's love. I won't sugar coat sin but I will remember that as soon as I leave grace out of law, I have attempted to diminish the power of the Holy blood of Jesus. He came and fulfilled the law and I don't want to scream that people are in sin without showing them that God didn't want to leave them there. He wanted to meet them RIGHT WHERE THEY ARE. He will come and help them walk out of their sin. Just like He daily helps me walk out of mine. Oh my merciful Jesus, take out bitterness and help me walk in compassion and breath grace every day.
I always enjoy your blog posts! I don't think this one was a hard read at all, maybe because I can relate? Specifically I'm learning to affirm this over and over in my own life: "He has taught me that I am worthy BUT so is everyone else." I find myself getting annoyed with people fairly easily and cast that person away and just move on if that makes sense? Or even getting annoyed with people that I love and being mad at them for no good reason... I can use Justin as an example, at dinner time I have to say in my head over and over "God didn't say love your neighbor if he chews his food properly he just said love them" :) ... I say this to remind me that we all have our flaws and how would I feel if someone chose to not love me over one of my flaws, like being seriously gross when I eat my food! LOL
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for reading! I get annoyed super easy too. The sad thing is, it is usually something I am struggling with in my own life so I immediately see it in others(except gross food eating. I am sure that is a Justin problem, not you! HA!)
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