There’s a lot on my plate, Father, with many things needing to be accomplished in a short period. Please help me focus on our time together and then get at the other things promptly and productively. Amen.

********

A middle school student has ridden my bus since the last half of his kindergarten year. He’s a good kid and, like many of them, is growing up way too fast! Anyway, most often, as students are getting off in the afternoon, I will say, “Have a good rest of your day” or “Have a good one,” adding their name, and usually their reply is “You, too.” Well, today I just said “Bye” to this young man, and did he say “Bye” back? No, he replied, as he usually does, “You, too.” I don’t know if he even caught what he said, or for that matter, if he even heard what I said.

I chuckled as I pulled away, but it got me to thinking. How often do we have automatic knee-jerk reactions to people and circumstances around us? I’ve responded similarly in similar situations myself and will often shake my head at my auto-response mechanism.

When I last preached, the passage of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount that we were studying was from Matthew 5:21-26, and we were dealing with anger.

A portion of my sermon (reworking one by Rev. Rod Buchanan) had this to say,

…a right relationship with God can never be separated from right relationships with other people. They are inextricably linked. A bad relationship with another person will interfere with your relationship with God. Sometimes, you cannot help the way someone feels about you. The Bible says in Romans 12:17-18,

“Never repay anyone evil for evil. Take thought for what is right and gracious and proper in the sight of everyone. If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” AMP

Sometimes, it’s possible, and sometimes it’s not. Sometimes, your efforts to bring reconciliation will work wonderfully…sometimes, you will be surprised that they do not affect the other person. But you are obligated to do what you can do. You are to look for opportunities. Love will find a way. Paul went on to say,

Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord.
Instead, “If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads.”
Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good. Romans 12:19-21 NLT

We are not to be passive about ruined relationships. We are to be intentionally proactive – even if we believe it will do no good.

So, when there is someone with whom we are at odds, do we respond in our interactions with knee-jerk reactions? “What good will it do? They’ll never change! I’ll just be wasting my breath.”

But what happens if their “Have a good one” becomes a “Bye”? What if they are experiencing a change of heart? What will our response be? Will we even notice?

That is why we never give up!

The great thing is that, as Christians, we know…Someone who is looking out for us, helping us, and working on our behalf. Reconciliation is the heartbeat of Christ. It sent him to the cross – and we are to be like him. Amen!

Jan 8th, 2024, Thurs, 5:08 pm