The Holy Spirit Prepares Our Hearts
In Matthew Chapter 7 verse 12 it states:
“In everything do to others as you would have them do to you.”
Matt 7:12 NRSV
As I read this, I just received an email from someone who had made an error and was blaming me for their problem. Humanly you don’t feel like taking the blame. You feel frustrated and you really want to tell them so, and that they are the problem! Especially when in the email they seem to be demanding you to fix the issue which they say you are to blame for.
But Jesus tells us to live above this way of thinking, this way of acting.
Jesus wants us to be, and act like Him.
He took our blame, our sin, our problems, our shame, our place on the cross.
Jesus gave to us His Kingdom. The eternal life available to all is what He won for us by dying and rising again.
Oh, it was not easy to reply with kind words. To silently take the blame for the person’s mistake. But the Holy Spirit had already prepared my heart and mind with the reading of these words from Christ. I could not ignore His prompting on how to act, on how to respond.
Are there times, situations in your life, where you have felt the Holy Spirit say to you, “Hold your tongue. Don’t think like that. Don’t act like that. Do it this way.”?
May these jottings from my journal inspire you to believe in and fall in love with Christ- the hope of the world, as stated in Jeremiah 17:7, ‘Blessed is the man who believes and trusts in and relies on the Lord and whose hope and confident expectation is the Lord!’
Love
Rosemary
Every week groups of ladies meet together to chat about the things I raise in my weekly blog post and to chat about life in general. We call these ‘Heart Connect’ groups.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
When you have been blamed for something that was not your fault how often have you felt like lashing out? Did you take the blame?
Have there been times in your life where you have felt the Holy Spirit prepare your heart for how to react to someone? What did you do? How was it different to how you wanted to act?
Have you experienced a softening of your heart with the help of the Holy Spirit? How do you continue to act with this softened heart?
7 Comments
Rita Lewis
Well done Rosemary, on your humble response.
Not an easy task, taking the blame, for another’s action. – We often hear the cliche ‘Be the better person,’ and if I am honest, ….
‘I’d prefer to stand my ground, and not ‘back down.’ However, I’ve also learnt; Being right, takes me nowhere, and only serves to upset me further, because it doesn’t align with who I want to be!
As I become older, (and somewhat wiser!), I prefer to gently listen, respond kindly, or ‘walk away, quietly.’
I prefer to hear and respond to the Holy Spirit’s words of wisdom and guidance.
Jeanne Zettler
Well said, Rita.
God Bless.
Amen.
Ilona Singleton
I am trying to do this – walk away or keep silent and when I have, I feel so much better- A softening of the Heart. Thankyou Rosemary and God Bless.
Sharron Dixon
Thank you Rosemary for this well-timed reminder. God bless our families.
Rosemary Jordan
Thankyou Rosemary, it’s a lesson I need to put into practice, I will keep trying to put right things that I should walk away from (I think)
Kristine Eva Fritz
I agree Rosemary, have found if I ‘listen’ to God, Scripture, it is often a Doorway to a Spiritual lesson. Our Father. Thank you Rosemary
Margie Clark
Thank you for sharing this. The past couple of weeks I’ve really had to pray about my negative attitude, and it’s helped. Learning to think positive kind thoughts and not verbalizing others