#To Forgive or Not to Forgive?

               Anger is the extreme dissatisfaction expressed over other people or one own self, through words or actions. The intent to express anger is to hurt that person in return of what they said or did. But why do we express anger? Is it due to an ineptness in us or because we consider ourselves a better judge over other's life. A parent correcting its kid(not beating them to pulp) is not an anger but concern over the kids life to stay on the right path and wake him out of their miserable illusion they sometimes fall into. As Jesus did when he drove out all the vendors sitting in God's temple and doing business and said it is written that, "My house shall be called the house of prayer but you have turned it into thieves lair".
               A doctor doesn't use a defibrillator on a healthy, fit and active person, at least not in its right mind. But it is used in emergency to bring the person to conscious who might be at the brink of losing it's life. To correct someone for the intent of saving them from the peril, you are sure may befall them is, care. As you may be saving a life. But going to an extreme in words and action to hurt someone for what they said or did to you, is revenge. And a person who goes out to take revenge defies God's supreme authority as the Judge. Who said himself that "It is mine to avenge, I will repay". Not you.
              Why did the first murder took place? Is it because Abel did something wrong to Cane? Is it because Cane wanted to correct him? Or is it because Cane was inept of being thankful and grateful truly, from the heart? He was merely doing a ritual to offer a part of the blessings he received, before the LORD. As we all do but, do we offer from our heart? Do we have the heart of Abel to offer the best of what we receive as our blessings? or do we merely do it as a ritual like Cane? Cane did not kill Able just because God accepted Able's sacrifice but also, because of his own ineptness of not being able to love God and to honour him with the sincerity of his heart.
             Why was Esau after Jacob to kill him? was it because of what Jacob did with him? or because of he himself selling his birthright for a bowl of lentils? When we begin to justify our own actions the Bible says ,'a person may think his own ways are right, but the LORD weighs the heart'. Jacob valued God's blessings and knew the importance of them in one's life. Esau did not!
             Why was Saul after David to kill him? What did David do? David won him a battle that no one was willing to fight! David was appointed to play Lyre for him whenever Saul was troubled by an evil spirit. So that by his playing the instrument it shall leave Saul, the King! Then why did Saul wanted to kill him? It is because of his own weakness to not love and honour God as David did. David, on the other hand, even after Saul falling into his hands many times, never intended to kill him because, Saul was God' anointed and David would not lay his hands on God's anointed. By doing this he did not honour a man but God, by accepting his supreme authority. Whereas Saul wanted to kill David even though he knew that Samuel anointed David, by God's command.
             Peter did love Jesus and honoured  him with utmost sincerity, but he was hasty in his actions . Even though he loved Jesus but did not fully understand him. In his haste he interrupted Jesus from prophesying His own death  and got rebuked. In his haste he cut off the ear of the soldier that came to arrest Jesus. In his haste committed himself to unfailing loyalty towards Jesus but was warned of his denial, which he would.
             One must not begin to judge others or one own self for whatever has happened. Instead should try and understand the other person's action and be considerate enough to forgive them. Jesus said, "Love those who hate you and pray for those who persecute you". Jesus said, "for all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God". When crowd brought the adulterous woman before Jesus, to stone her to death, Jesus said, "Let the one among you who has never sinned throw the first stone". Remember the parable where the servant of the king is forgiven his huge debt but he did not forgive the small debt of his fellow servant but beat him up. When the King came to know about it he said 'You evil servant! I forgave you that huge debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?' Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be beaten until he paid his entire debt.
             We say LORD's prayer everyday but do say it sincerely? We say ...forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. So this means our sins shall be forgiven by the measure of forgiveness we give to people. Forgiveness is the best gift we can give to others.
              Jesus loves the pure in heart. He said, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God". Let us then forgive first ourselves and others for whatever has happened or has been done in the past. And live a life in love and peace with all. As it is said love conquers all! God is Love.

#Are we under influence?!

                  We must understand our enemy and how he operates. He works his way in our mind through our thoughts. But then those thoughts are not our thoughts but satan's words. The words that keep pushing us to do something are not divine. God never pushes! he moves one's heart. We must learn to discern our thoughts and enemy's words. For that we have a ready referral, Bible- The word of God.
                   How do women know the utensils of their home? how can they pick out one tiny spoon of all and announce, 'it is not ours'? Because they know what they have and how it appears.
Our enemy is like a thief who won't make any sound when he enters your property and if you are not alert, he may even get away with your valuables and it may be too late to realize it. This is why Jesus said stay awake for the time is near, be alert, do not sleep, do not slumber, mend the broken walls, so that, the foxes do not enter the vineyard. We should be alert since we are now spiritual beings right from the moment we received the Holy Spirit. Because this is the silver coin given to us. Do we hide it and wait for the Master to return? or do we spread more and increase what we received? The time is neigh stay on guard.
                  Do not let the enemy influence you. Learn to defend against him, learn to resist. Realize those thoughts which makes you repent later. Know which is not good, so that, you may get away from it. Because the enemy tries to blend his words in your thoughts by covering it with a false appearance of Just and Right. It's only when you have yielded that you realize that what you did may not have been good. But before you are able to confirm your doubt, he again puts more words of justification to your actions. But if we are asked not to judge others, how can we judge ourselves? Since Jesus Christ is the perfect judge.
                 And if you are confirmed in your doubt the enemy puts loads of guilt on you. So that, your thoughts take a complete new turn and you begin to feel all those things about yourself which you are not. You start considering yourself bad. you consider yourself the worst of the sinners to have lived. Hence, the enemy says the punishment of one crime is the same as is, for a number of. And it begins to justify all you do. Now everything right is turning out to be either difficult to execute or utter foolishness(not your thoughts but the enemy's).
                 The enemy keeps pouring more and more of his words in our mind until it is flooded and then we begin to sink in it. We are not able to cry for help, why?! because this would mean to deny yourself of what you have been doing till now. We are almost dead but try to keep our(selves) alive through our dead work. Our false image which has been created with the assistance of the enemy without us realizing who is working in our quarters.
                 Now the enemy plays his final tune and helps you live a dual life, one for the world one for your(self). The enemy makes it so easy that living for Jesus Christ becomes the most impossible task. The enemy says, why to die when you can live?! He assures you that it is alright to drink of both the cups, from God's and as well of the world of his. After all, you are mere human you cannot help it, you can only do what is in your capacity and only what seems possible. Since you are mere human, its alright to feel what you feel, its alright to react how you react. As the enemy said, it is alright to eat the apple! because only after you have eaten it will you know the pleasures and power of it, the satisfaction it fills you with. So he pushes more and tells you, "Go ahead and eat surely you shall not die, instead be transformed, God like", i.e., a better you the best you. God gave you free will, have you chosen to get influenced?