Thoughts on Grace

I have been stressed out lately over a situation in my office involving one particular person. This person appears to enjoy getting ahead at the expense of others. In recent weeks, attitudes within the office have gotten very negative as a result of all the drama this person has initiated. I was at the point of having a talk with my boss when she came to town today, but one of my other co-workers said that she has been praying about the situation and thought we should wait and let God work things out in his own timing. As I pondered this in my heart, I agreed to wait, though not fully convinced it was the right thing to do.

"But he who has been forgiven little loves little..." Luke 7:47

In a book I have been reading recently, the author suggested that we should be willing to extend the same grace to others that God has given us. When I read this, I have to admit I felt a little guilty. This past weekend I ran into a guy that I had a brief (but totally immoral) relationship with prior to becoming a Christian. In my flesh, I felt this guy should be getting his "just desserts" for being an adulterer who never even felt guilty for cheating (at least I felt guilty, right??) Instead, he was strolling casually through the bookstore downtown, holding hands with another woman. I will not lie, seeing this angered me. I got a little self-righteous and wanted to kick and scream to God about how unfair it is that he is happy and I am the one who has repented and tried to live right. I wanted to start quoting one of the imprecatory psalms, calling for God's vindication on all my enemies! What I failed to realize at the time is that if God gave us all exactly what we deserve when we deserve it, I probably wouldn't be here. I had to ask God to forgive me.

"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Luke 23:34

In these two situations, I have started to realize areas in which I need to grow. First, I am guilty of getting angry (a thoroughly useless emotion) without thinking about why people might be the way they are. Someone once said, "When you know better, you will do better." I really believe this. Therefore, I am going to try to make a conscious effort to pray for those who hurt me, instead of getting angry. I have asked God to give me a sympathetic heart towards these people. It is a lot harder to be angry when you feel sorry for someone.