Thursday, November 7 – For those who listen...

"But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸ bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.”
                                                                      –Luke 6:27-28 (NRSV)

Whether family, friends, or strangers, some people in our lives are going to turn out to be “enemies” ...or at best “non-friends.” 

It may be through direct contact or what we learn from others, but some people are going to conflict with the way we think and act and believe life should be like.  Some conflict will turn deadly.  We see that in the news all the time.

So what do we do with Jesus’ advice about the ‘difficult’ people in our lives?    Listen.

Jesus calls us to a degree of trust that’s difficult...but not wimpy.  Ghandi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Nelson Mandela all listened.

It begins with prayer...and in most cases that leads to a different perception of “the enemy.”  Maybe they can be reached; maybe their power can be neutralized.  “Love your enemies.”  Jesus did...still does.