Don't Make Them Beg!

Has anyone ever asked you to do something good that was entirely in your area of competence? You had no other commitments, and it was actually something you enjoyed doing. But you said no!

While I totally understand the wisdom of building helpful margins in life, there are times when we allow ourselves to wallow in a state of inertia. Our natural man doesn't want to be bothered. We just want to be left alone. Then along comes that pesky neighbor needing bread to feed his friends (Luke 11:5-8) or that persistent widow asking for help (Luke 18:3-5), and we struggle within ourselves.

But God wants better from us. He wants us to be like himself who will quickly "bring about justice for his chosen ones who cry out to him day and night" (Luke 18:7-8).

"Do not withhold good from those who deserve it,

when it is in your power to act.

Do not say to your neighbor,

'Come back later; I'll give it tomorrow'--

when you now have it with you."

~Proverbs 3:27-28  

Treat others as you would have them treat you. In other words, "Don't make them beg!"

A String of Selah Pearls - Psalm 44:6-8

Positioned gracefully across the Book of Psalms is a string of seventy-one pearls, lovely beads of wisdom followed by the admonition SELAH which means, “Pause, think on these things, meditate.”

Psalm 44:6-8 “I do not trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory; but you give us victory over our enemies, you put our adversaries to shame. In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever. Selah.”

Meditation:

Does anyone not have an enemy? For years, I thought I didn’t. Then the “neighbor from _ _ _ _” moved in next door and, voila, I had an enemy. Kindness failed. I didn’t know what to do.

What were the problems? Oh, nothing much. Just regular attacks by his dog (that’s what started it). Tires flattened. Verbal abuse. Threats to our daughters.

I didn’t want revenge, just wanted the harassment to stop. I contacted lawyers, grievance committees, reconciliation experts. Nothing could be done; the offenses were just (barely) inside the law or could not be proven. My “bow” and my “sword” were useless.

“Lord,” I cried. “Help me!”

“It’s about time you asked,” He must have said. Next thing I knew, there was a moving van in front of the neighbor’s house . . . and then, he was gone. Praise God, he was gone. In God, I make this boast: He kept me from returning evil for evil. I like to think that the neighbor noticed that and, hopefully, became ashamed of his actions, hopefully repented. Someday, I’ll know.

SELAH

Look up: Psalm 20:7; 15:1-3; 37:10-11; Romans 12:17