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Inspirational Verses #21

bethanxx — Fri, 10 May 2013 06:48:36 +0000

¹²Hate stirs up trouble, but love forgives all offences.- Proverbs 10:12

Biblical Wisdom - Proverbs 10:12

ItsaSquashyWorld — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 00:40:28 +0000

Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.

Letting Go Of The Past

rameychristy72 — Thu, 27 Dec 2012 00:16:18 +0000

Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins. (Proverbs 10:12 KJV)

Leaving the past mistakes and looking forward to new beginning can often be a challenge. Our hearts can be so torn that it takes us in many different places at times especially with those that we are the closest too. Even so, moving forward and onward is difficult when bitterness still lingers and resides in our hearts. It can eat us alive and often leave us feeling alone. Instead, we have to learn to cast all of cares upon Jesus, but how?

The first step we talked about in our last devotional—Be Forgiving. By learning to forgive, we are learning the steps of letting go of the hurt. We are once again remembering how to smile and to be at peace. Often it can be difficult when the enemy tries to take over our lives and tempt us to do the wrong things. However, we must stand firm and remember that with God we are never alone.

This was a hard concept for me to learn. I’m the type of person that has to have everything now. I want to know that all of my problems are fixed. So when I can’t have that, I have a hissy fit. Basically, I go nuts. I’m not satisfied because I don’t have the answers I need. But I have to know that God has my best interest at heart and that He will always be there for me whatever I am facing— good or bad.

I’ve had to discover that beneath the pain there is a deeper part of me that wants to have that peace. By nature, I do not like to fuss and argue. I like to have harmony at all cost. That is however, not always possible to obtain because the enemy likes to crash my party. Satan likes to tell me that I am a failure and that I cannot possibly be the winner. Nevertheless, I politely remind him (Satan) that God is in my corner and to leave me alone. But that doesn’t always happen because he is very good at temptation.

So I have to work harder and I have to be persistent in my prayer time. My daily reading of the word is what fills my mind and soul with the lessons I need to learn for my day. It’s what guards me off and it helps me to let go of the anger that I feel. I know that when I finally release the hate for another person that I have truly been able to let go of the pain and hurt I’ve felt for a long time. When I can smile again and laugh at the problem then I have let go of the hurt.

It won’t happen overnight. It does take a lot of constant prayer. Lots of daily reading in the word of God (Bible), and it helps to hold those verses near to my heart. The good thing about having those verses near to my heart is that when trouble arises and the hurt happens again, I can defeat it, by clinging to the word for the hope I need. His promises will never let you down and it will help you to let go of the past.

Father, I’m glad for the Bible that constantly reminds me of your love during difficult moments of life. Thank you for walking next to me during those times and helping to release the hurt of my past. I love you, Father. Amen.

Christine M. Miller-Ramey

Hilliard, Florida

"Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin" is a Lie

Brian Webb — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 16:35:03 +0000

This is something I’ve been praying about and I really feel that God wants to speak on this through me, because I think we’ve/I’ve got our heads screwed on sideways on this topic of hatred. God is incredibly explicit about hatred on many accounts throughout the Bible, but I think somehow the phrase, “Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin” has become a bit doctrinal, and it gets a lot of people (myself included) in trouble. See, hatred is a poison. Once you get a little bit of it in you, it starts to spread. It’s not easily controllable, and it consumes, like a fire, everything it touches. God showed me this last night, and I really had to pray about it to make sure it was biblical and I believe that it is. God said, “What about the Homosexuals? Their sin is a lifestyle. It’s so closely related to their being, that you, as a human, are incapable of separating the sin from the sinner. You’re so incapable of this, that hating homosexuality quickly becomes hating homosexuals. I cannot bless that in you.” And that completely broke my heart.

The Merriam Webster dictionary defines hatred as, “intense hostility and aversion (a feeling of repugnance toward something with a desire to avoid or turn from it) usually deriving from fear, anger, or sense of injury.” Intense hostility and a feeling of repugnance (disgust) with a desire to turn from it. It’s usually derived from fear, anger, or a sense of injury – all of which we are warned, Biblically, to avoid like the plague. Joshua 1:9, Psalm 37:8, Matthew 5:39.

1 John 4:20 says,If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. I think this is where most people get the idea that it’s OK to hate the sin, so long as we don’t hate the sinner – simply because the passage only refers to hating your “brother.” But check out Proverbs 10:12, Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses. To me, that seems pretty explicit. Hatred – of anything, anyone, anytime, anywhere – stirs up strife, but Love – of anything, anyone, anytime, anywhere – will cover all offenses. Offenses. Offenses…? Merriam Webster defines sin as, “an offense against religious or moral law.” So sin is an offense, and love covers all offenses, and the exact opposite of that is hatred. This only makes complete and total perfect sense, because God is love. God made Himself man (Jesus) and came to the earth to die, to take away the sins of the world. To cover all offenses.Come on! Can I get a hallelujah or something?? Jesus came to cover all offenses! That’s so great! But are we rejecting that?

We don’t have permission to hate anything. I have heard, “Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin,” preached doctrinally in the Church! Nowhere in the Bible does it say we have permission to hate anything! So not only is it not in the Bible, but it also goes against everything the Bible says! Let’s connect all the logic trains…

If Love (God) covers all offenses, and hatred is the opposite of that, then hatred rejects the covering of those offenses. If sin is an offense against heaven, then Love (God) covers it, and hatred rejects the covering. If we are hating anything, that means our focus is so deeply on that thing – so angry, fearful, or hurt because of it – that we can’t see anything else. If we can’t see anything else, we’re condemning the person who’s sin we hate, because we’re so focused on hating the sin that we aren’t declaring love and redemption over them.If we aren’t declaring love and redemption over them, it’s as good as saying, “To hell with you. You aren’t worth it.” All because we, “Hate the Sin and “love” the Sinner.” But where’s the love in saying, “To hell with you?” Where’s the love in condemnation?

Some of you might be asking, “What, then, do we do with sin?” My only answer would be, “Nothing.” It’s not our job to deal with sin. And certainly not to hate it. God hates sin, and that’s perfectly OK, because He’s capable of separating the sin from the sinner. He already did! He effectively found a way to kill himself, to redeem us from our sins – to separate us from our sins. What human is capable of separating anyone from their sins? I’m sure not capable of it – and therefore I have no right to hate it. I have no power over sin in anyone else’s life – only in my own, and even then my focus is not on my sin. My focus is on loving Love (God) more. Our focus should always be Love.

I am overwhelmed by some of the Bible verses that talk about love:

1 John 4:7 ESV

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

Colossians 3:14 ESV

And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

John 15:13 ESV

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

1 Peter 4:8 ESV

Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.

John 13:34-35 ESV

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

1 Peter 4:8 in particular is such a powerful verse concerning this very topic. It doesn’t say love the Sinner hate the Sin, it says love everyone earnestly because Love covers the sin. It doesn’t expose it to the world. It doesn’t point out how disgusting a thing you’re doing is. It doesn’t bring shame, defeat or self-worthlesness. It covers the sin. It makes it go away. Where the light is, no darkness can stand. If Jesus is the light, Jesus is God, and God is Love, than the Light is Love. Where Love is, no darkness (sin) can stand. So Love the Sinner and Cover the Sin. There shouldn’t be room for hatred of anything in your life, because Hatred and Love are such polar opposites. Love doesn’t like to be in the same presence as Hatred, nor Hatred, Love. They can’t exist together, because they’re such conflicting things.

I want to take this next space to apologize to anyone out there who has suffered hatred from anyone, Christian or not. It is not a biblical thing we desire to do, and I want to sincerely apologize for the widespread outbreak of hatred that has so pervaded the Christian Church that, in extreme cases, signs like “God hates F**s” are acceptable, and, in less extreme cases, statements like “Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin,” indirectly leave people condemned, rejected, hurt and hell-bound. We cannot have this mentality any longer. It’s completely contrary to Jesus. To love. It’s a false gospel that just has to leave in the name of Jesus and be replaced with Love.

Praise the Lord, that Love covers a multitude of sins, including hating your brother. Bless y’all. <3

The Hospitality Commands Part 2 - Hospitality without Complaint

Stan Meador — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 11:03:01 +0000

“Love can be an abstract, indistinct idea; hospitality is specific and tangible. We seldom complain

AGAPE NUGGETS 6

AgapeFocus — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 02:20:09 +0000

Giving cheerfully,serving joyfully,loving whole-heartedly,accommodating each other with readiness to forgive when offended,bearing one another’s burdens or problems responsibly and compassionately,are essentials or hallmarks of true,Christ-centered relationship.God calls every Christian into this quality of life.Since God proved his love towards us in that while we were yet sinners,Christ died for us,we should never underrate any man or woman.God has deposited special gems in each individual.We ought to recognize, appreciate,celebrate and enhance our neighbour’s potential or talents.Selfishness or arrogance never pays at anytime because they ruin relationships.A true friend is the one who tells you when you go wrong,but does not condemn you.He is someone before whom you can think aloud!Be such a friend. Hatred stirs up contentions,but Love covers many transgressions(Proverbs 10:12) Love is patient and kind,not envious,not boastful,not haughty, arrogant,nor selfish.Love does not condone wrong doing,but rejoices in truth.It is trustful, believing and enduring (1 Corinthians 13:4-8).

Daily Strength - Strange Love

Rogers Tahir — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 10:27:35 +0000

Daily Strength – Strange Love August 29 Old Testament Mother Teresa Make your face shine on yo

Forgive and Forget

melonaide — Sun, 06 May 2012 15:48:48 +0000

Do I need to say anything more?

Bible Verse of the Day - Proverbs 10:12 ‎Hatred Stirs Up Dissension, But Love Covers Over All Wrongs

astro64th — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 20:00:07 +0000

God loves you. More than you can ever comprehend.

Want a Bible verse of infinite wisdom? Here is a good one:

“Hatred Stirs Up Dissension, But Love Covers Over All Wrongs.” – Proverbs 10:12 ‎

Remember that love is the most powerful Commandment, it is literally the commandment for which all other Commandments lean on. Without love, you are nothing. And without love, God cannot, and will not, use you. Love is powerful, and all problems ultimately, can be solved by love.

The Bible and Love Go Hand-In-Hand.

Daily Devotional - 12/29/11 "Forgive!"

Kisha's Daily Devotional — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 16:39:49 +0000

If I’ve made a mistake and I apologized, would you forgive me? If I didn’t come when you called and

ABIDE IN HIS LOVE

Ozzie — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 18:58:31 +0000

Love is the most powerful weapon in the world, when we use it appropriately, and bestow it in its proper perspective. Love will always make you do right, because where love is hate cannot manifest its ugly self. True love is contagious, and if you allow it to fester it will spread like a wild-fire out of control, then it will cover a multitude of sins (Proverbs 10:12; 1 Peter 4:8), then the world will be a better place. Love started with God, was manifested through Jesus(John 3:16), and was given to us.

In John 15:9 Jesus said, “As the father loved me, I also have loved you; abide in my love”. To abide is to stay or remain in His(Jesus) love, you must realize that when you step out of the boundaries of Gods love, that’s when you expose yourself to all manner of hurt and pain. Jesus did not leave it at that, He told us the only way to abide in His love is to keep His commandments, yes it is the same ones that was given to Moses in Exodus 20. No my friends it’s not impossible to do, Jesus came and showed us that it’s do-able and possible way of life.

When Jesus walked on this earth, He kept His Fathers (God) commandments and abide in His(Gods) love ( John 15:10). Now if we abide in Jesus’ love, and keep His commandment to love each other, then His joy will remain in us, and our joy will be full then this world will be a better place;the devil love it when we hate each other,hurt each other,and kill each other,because he gets the glory and your chances of having everlasting life will be doomed ,because his is doomed;The wages of sin is death;but the gift of God is eternal life (Romans 6:23).

Did you accept Gods gift? Do you know who or what it is ? well John 3:16-17 tells us that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son (Jesus)that whosoever believeth on Him(Jesus),will not perish but have everlasting life,Jesus did not come to condemn us but to save us,put us back in right standing with God;Listen there is no other way,or access to God except through Jesus (John 14:6);you will not escape Gods wrath and judgement when you neglect His love,His gift of His son(Jesus),and the opportunity of salvation( Hebrews 2:3).

Now is the time and here is your chance,go to the top of this blog,click on to the salvation page,then follow the instructions,trust me it will be the best decision you ever make. All glory,praise,honor,and thanks be to God for enabling me to minister to His people,a message of hope,joy,love,and salvation,I pray that God will give the readers of His message spiritual wisdom, knowledge, understanding,and discernment now and forever in Jesus name ,amen.

LOVE INSTEAD OF HATE

Ozzie — Wed, 18 May 2011 17:19:14 +0000

Love is the only solution to hate, but if you are full of hate, then love cannot be manifested through you. Hatered is like a venomous snake full of poison, ready to pounce on a hopeless, and helpless victim. Hate is of the devil, and it’s only intention is to steal, kill, and destroy, hatred is an infectious diseases that, if it goes unattended will totally destroy you and leads to death of some kind or another. Yes, you get temporary satisfaction for your ego, but you destroy your relationship with God, and others.

In society we are so quick to hate, and seek revenge, to render an eye for an eye, when God distinctly tells us that vengeance is His, He will repay. This was why they crucified Jesus, His philosophy, and teachings, because He preached love; He told us to love our enemies, bless them who curses us, do good to them that hate you, and pray for those who despitefully use, and persecute you( Matthew 5:44).

Trust me, I know it’s not easy, because it cuts like a knife, it leaves a bitter taste in your mouth, it rips your heart out, and tears you apart. But God tells us to love, Jesus came and proveed to us that it is possible, and do-able; look what they did to Him before He went to the cross, on His way to the cross, and while He was on the cross, yet His only response was a prayer, ‘Father forgive them,for they know not what they do’ ( Luke 23:34).That’s love that covers a multitude of sins ( Proverbs 10 :12, 1 Peter 4:8 ), Jesus demonstration of love to us, and for us should propel us to love others ( John 15:13); The only thing we should owe each other is love; Love worked no ill ( Romans 13 :8-10). Gods desire is for us to put on love ( Colossians 3:14); Love will never fail, it’s the greatest thing ever ( 1 Corinthians 13 :8). From the old to the new testament, God speaks of love (Leviticus 19:18, Matthew 5:38-45, 1 Peter 3:9), so if it possible lets love and live at peace with everybody (Romans 12 :17-18).

If you don’t know the God of love, go to the top of this blog, click on to the salvation page, then follow the instructions, it will be the best thing you ever did. I give God the glory, praise, honor, and thanks for using me to put His message out there. I pray it blesses you as it did me. In Jesus’ name, amen.

AGAPE LOVE

Ozzie — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 13:47:21 +0000

What am I living for, if not for God. If loving God is wrong, then I don’t want to be right. People throw around this word(love) daily, as if they mean what the word dictates. Some people get married under the umbrella of love, for better or worse, richer or poorer, sickness or health, but as soon as worse, or poorer, or sickness comes they are the first to tell you it’s not going to work, or they didn’t sign up for this, the best is, when they say, I don’t love you anymore, or they fall out of love, or grow out of love, as if it’s a piece of clothes that doesn’t fit, or used furniture. But stop for a second, and think,who loves you unconditionally? and who should the love you are giving away so freely go to?

Let me explain something, that most people don’t get or understand, the origin of love is God, and it starts out with giving. ‘For God so loved the world, He gave, His only begotten son, Jesus the Christ, that whosoever believeth on Him will not perish, but have eternal life’(John 3:16), now that’s the epiphany, and essence of love ladies and gentlemen.

Gods whole character is love, and His love starts with giving of a gift. Can you imagine, if God decides to divorce us, or falls out of love with us. Gods love letter to the world (Corinthians 13), demonstrates to us what love is, not what it ought to be, and if you look at verse thirteen it tells us, ‘and now abides faith, hope, love….but the greatest of the three is love’. Friends if God, is not the focal part of the marriage, then you have problems, divorces, adultery, and the works. ‘He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love’(1 John 4:8). Most people fail to realize this scripture, ‘thou shalt love the lord thy God, with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all your mind…then thy neighbor as thyself’(Matthew 22:37-40) this places us in the third spot, or position.

Listen folks, grace be with all them that love the Lord(Ephesians 6:24),we love Him, because He first love us( 1 John 4:19), God has loved us with an everlasting love(Jeremiah 31:3), greater love hath no man, than Jesus who laid down His life for us(John 15:13), love covereth all sins(Proverbs 10:12,1 Peter 4:8)

If you don’t know God, His gift of His only begotten son Jesus the Christ, then go to the top of this blog, click onto the salvation page, and follow the instructions, it will be the best thing you ever do, in your entire life.

I give God, the glory, praise, honor, and thanks for using me to release His message, to the saved, and unsaved, I pray they will be obedient to His will, and ways in Jesus Name, amen.

A Thin Line

Ozzie — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 14:06:05 +0000

The song says,’ there is a thin line between love and hate’ which is a fact, but there is also , a thin line between a lot of other things too, like: sanity and insanity, good and evil, happy and sad, and the one I am getting to, which is the most important is righteousness and unrighteousness.

Gods desire for us is to be righteous, because being righteous eliminates all the hate, insanity, evil and sadness, because, one of the characteristics of righteousness is love.(Proverbs 10:12 ; 1 Peter 4:8)tells us,’love covers a multitude of sins’.

If we follow Gods, only begotten son; Jesus example, we will be on our way to righteous living instead of an unrighteous one.

You must understand righteousness = eternal life, once you accept Gods son (Jesus).

unrighteousness = death and eternal damnation, once you live for and accept the devils way of life.

which path are you on? life or death the choice is yours.

Allow the God of all grace, who has called us unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, make you new, perfect, established, strengthened and settled.(1 Peter 5:10).

(John 14:6)Jesus said,’He is the way, the truth, and the life, no one goes to the father (God) except through Him (Jesus). To accept Jesus go to the top of my blog, and log on to the steps to and the salvation page and accept Him now, please don’t delay.

TO GOD BE THE GLORY, HONOR, PRAISE AND THANKS FOR USING ME TO BRING HIS MESSAGE ACROSS THE GLOBE. Amen.

"Actions Speak Louder than Words" - Ouch!

christywebster — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 03:22:34 +0000

Sometimes Life Lessons come to us that are unpalatable. Yesterday I got served up a dish of “Humble Pie”. I was lacking something essential for my well-being, and a thoughtful, generous, friend wanted to let me know that he saw my deficiency and could not sit by when I was obviously in need. The pie came in the form of a little tiny message… a collection of simple words that barely made up a sentence on my facebook page. The words themselves were innocuous… I didn’t even notice that the words were a piece of “ Humble Pie” laced with castor oil. I gobbled it all down quickly with no more than a “thanks for commenting” reply. Little did I know that his remark, “Actions Speak Louder than Words” was a dose of medicine that I sorely needed. It was Homeopathic… a bitter medicine to remove and purge the bitterness that was inside of me… bitterness that I was too blinded by intense emotion to see. The ”Humble Pie” caused no negative physical, mental or emotional reaction at first, but after it had a chance to settle into my soul, and I realized what I had done, it made me queasy and ill feeling all afternoonand even into the night… even now. This blog is a late attempt to rectify a wrong.

“I’m Sorry!” I’m Sorry!” “I’m so very very sorry!” I want to shout it out for all to hear. I want my friends to know it, my family, my children, anyone who has read or will read my blog from Sunday to know that I was wrong. I was wrong. I have learned my own life lesson, and horribly that lesson was learned at the expense of others. It was not done with malice, but it was done with the worst kind of irony… I wrote a blog about “The Power of Words” and the pain that can be inflicted by the callous use of words. Albeit unintentionally, and with out recognizing what I was doing, I did EXACTLY that!

I will not erase or edit the blog from Sunday, because it is real and it is raw and it is true…but it is only true for me.” No one can judge another person based on what someone else says about them! Each of you must develop your own opinions regarding another based on your own interaction with that person! We cannot accept anything negative that we hear about someone unless we know for ourselves without any doubt that the words are true… and we should ask ourselves before we speak: Is it true? Is it helpful? Is it nice? If it isn’t then don’t speak.” That is a lesson that I have tried to instill in my children… I have preached lessons to them about this very topic for as long as they could understand my words…and recently even more so… it is fresh on my tongue and mind… but other things are fresh on my mind too and that has tainted any objectivity where my hurt is concerned. “Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers over all wrongs.” Proverbs 10:12

I don’t want to stir up dissension. I don’t want the power of my words to sway anyone’s opinion about things that they do not know first hand. The pain in my stomach and heart and soul today was not caused by the daggers inflicted by anyone on me, but by my recognizing that I am a BIG Hypocrite. I was preaching a sermon to the masses, and expecting to be understood, when I had no understanding myself. It hit me… like a two by four… like a plank of wood.

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no atttention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite….” Jesus’ words in Matthew 7 smacked me right in the gut. I am a hypocrite. I devote an entire blog to my rants and raves of my maltreatment and titled it “The Power of Words” …then what did I do? I used my words as a weapon, just as I was denouncing it, I was doing it! Terrible! If the words “I’m Sorry” can be a soothing balm, then please accept my apology. Please recognize that I see the error, and I am greatful to the person who gently showed me that I was blinded by a big log in my own eye.

When emotions are so raw, it is impossible to have any objectivity. Given time, my words and feelings would be more diluted… less poisonous..but also less powerful to others who can relate to how I feel. But I have to recognize that I was a party to my own hurts. I perpetuated it. I allowed everything to continue… I remained a partner in the dance. But now it is finished. It is time to let go. All I can hope is that I do not revisit that place very often, because it is an ugly and a bitter place…and I am sorry that I took you there with me for a little while. I want to help build, I want to inspire. I want people to learn from me… it looks like I still have plenty to learn from others too. Thanks, Harry.

Captain Encouragement

Eric — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 18:36:06 +0000

I’m a fiery guy. Really. When I get pumped, there’s little standing in my way that can keep me from what I want or what I’m feeling. The unfortunate thing about this is that sometimes it rings true with people too. Occasionally if someone makes a mistake and it directly effects me or my path, I can get bent out of shape. You know what I mean, the cashier in the drive-thru jacks up your order, someone cuts you off on the road, someone speaks ill against you without knowing all the facts or something like that.

The truth is I’m trying to be much more encouraging in ALL areas of my life. I really want to be the guy to show the people who hate Jesus how He would love them if he met them face to face. It often seems easier to be intentional about reaching out and encouraging people who just seem down or having the desire to have a general attitude of encouragement. You know, hitting someone with a cool message or text to convey the love of Christ when they were least expecting it. But what about when someone stupid really ticks you off, gets your blood boiling or just downright deserves justice and you’re going to be the one to deliver it?

It’s nearly impossible to live our lives without human contact unless you’re gifted with the miracle of flight or even dramatic mole-like tendencies to burrow underground and out of sight. And let’s face it often times we want to be away from people altogether. People can be irritating. Especially those with different personalities or attitudes that clash with our own. Do we really NEED those people in our lives? Pastor Steve even noted on Sunday morning that it’s best for us to live alongside of and with the help of others…

⁹ Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their work:

¹⁰ If one falls down,
his friend can help him up.
But pity the man who falls
and has no one to help him up!

Ecclesiastes 4:9, 10

See that? We need each other! My problem seems to exist in the fact that I’m more often concerned with how I feel rather than the feelings or concerns of others. Can you relate to that? I seem generally inclined to act quickly on my emotions and feelings rather than take a moment to consider and assess the situation. I love in James chapter 1 how the author describes our duties of listening to be greater to those of speaking. He understood that quick draw style responses often resulted in shoving ones foot in their mouth. So very simply, if we respond to hate with more hate what do we get? That’s right… MORE HATE! BUT, if we respond in LOVE, it more often than not cancels out the hate or at the very least stops the pattern of hatred from spreading. Check out Proverbs 10:12…

¹² Hatred starts fights,
but love pulls a quilt over the bickering.

OH BABY THAT’S INTENSE! I think I’ve said enough. How can you help stop spreading the pattern of hatred and selfishness?