Tonight I got a little reminder of the fact that born-again Christians do not gel with the rest of the world. This is hard for me to take as I am a people-pleaser. I love to be liked. I logged on to find that someone had posted, under one of the many Bible verses I had recently posted on the latch hook hobby page I started, that, in their opinion, latch hook has nothing to do with religion and they did not understand why "this" was posted there. (Incidentally, the verse read "Resist the devil and he will flee from you.") Well, the snarky reply I ripped off in anger went something along the lines of "Because the FOUNDER of this page is a Christian and this is a verse from the BIBLE.) Also, I banned her, then unbanned her in the same moment, heat from my anger still flushing my face. I fashioned another response, basically stating that I am unashamed of my faith and that I hoped she stayed with the page. The final thing I did was to take the page down altogether. I had toyed with that idea in the past, anyway and had not been actively posting about my hobby in recent weeks on that page.
No doubt in my mind the enemy of my soul was behind the whole incident. I was reminded that I am to respond in love. It was interesting how I went through several shades of "unlove" before resting on that conclusion. I took the page down because I do not believe arguing with unbelievers on a craft page has one whit to do with my calling. Nasty Facebook banter is the reason I have cut far back on my use of the social medium, as it was messing with my peace in a serious (and utterly needless) way, not to mention WASTING the life God gave me.
I will, if I allow myself to partake of God's bountiful grace, remember to love people of all backgrounds and degrees of separation from God. Only in His strength can I do this. As you may have noticed in a prior blog post, criticizing and talking about others is a horrible habit I am seeking to avert, and is one born of my temper! Getting used to the fact that I will NEVER grow spiritually as long as I am impatient with others, unable to see them with the heart of love Jesus has for them. I just pray that I will learn that delicate balance between ministering to others and allowing others who have no intention of change, no interest in the grace of the cross to suck up my time and pull me into their dark worlds. I am thankful that the wisdom of the Holy Spirit will guide me as I go. I do know that all things must be done in love and gentleness.
No doubt in my mind the enemy of my soul was behind the whole incident. I was reminded that I am to respond in love. It was interesting how I went through several shades of "unlove" before resting on that conclusion. I took the page down because I do not believe arguing with unbelievers on a craft page has one whit to do with my calling. Nasty Facebook banter is the reason I have cut far back on my use of the social medium, as it was messing with my peace in a serious (and utterly needless) way, not to mention WASTING the life God gave me.
I will, if I allow myself to partake of God's bountiful grace, remember to love people of all backgrounds and degrees of separation from God. Only in His strength can I do this. As you may have noticed in a prior blog post, criticizing and talking about others is a horrible habit I am seeking to avert, and is one born of my temper! Getting used to the fact that I will NEVER grow spiritually as long as I am impatient with others, unable to see them with the heart of love Jesus has for them. I just pray that I will learn that delicate balance between ministering to others and allowing others who have no intention of change, no interest in the grace of the cross to suck up my time and pull me into their dark worlds. I am thankful that the wisdom of the Holy Spirit will guide me as I go. I do know that all things must be done in love and gentleness.
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