Words of Encouragement Scripture; 2 Chroncles 28:8-15 8. The sons of Israel carried away captive of their brethren 200,000 women, sons and daughters; and they took also a great deal of spoil from them, and brought the spoil to Samaria. 9. But a prophet of the Lord was there, whose name was Oded; and he went out to meet the army which came to Samaria and said to them, Behold, because the Lord, the God of your fathers, was angry with Judah, He has delivered them into your hand, and you have slain them in a rage which has even reached heaven. 10. Now you are proposing to subjugate for yourselves the people of Judah and Jerusalem for male and female slaves. Surely, do you not have transgressions of your own against the Lord your God? 11. Now therefore, listen to me and return the captives whom you captured from your brothers, for the burning anger of the Lord is against you. 12. Then some of the heads of the sons of Ephraim--Azariah the son of Johanan, Berechiah the son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah the son of Shallum, and Amasa the son of Hadlai--arose against those who were coming from the battle, 13. and said to them, You must not bring the captives in here, for you are proposing to bring upon us guilt against the Lord adding to our sins and our guilt; for our guilt is great so that His burning anger is against Israel. 14. So the armed men left the captives and the spoil before the officers and all the assembly. 15. Then the men who were designated by name arose, took the captives, and they clothed all their naked ones from the spoil ; and they gave them clothes and sandals, fed them and gave them drink, anointed them with oil, led all their feeble ones on donkeys, and brought them to Jericho, the city of palm trees, to their brothers; then they returned to Samaria. Look closely at verse 15. From Our Daily Homily by F.B. Meyer A great burst of generosity was here, for Israel had every reason to be incensed against Judah for the raid made on their territory. But, instead of pushing their advantage to the uttermost, they returned good for evil, and anticipated the words of the apostle, If your enemy hungers, feed him; if he thirsts, give him drink; for in so doing you shall heap coals of fire on his head. Have you in your life people who have done you injury, and against whom you entertain hard thoughts? You do not injure them in return, but you cannot pray for them. So far as you can, you avoid them; you make no attempt to overcome the evil that is in them. But to act thus is to come short of Christs standard. It is your duty, not merely to keep at a distance and give them a wide berth, but by love to destroy the evil, to transform the enemy into a friend, and to create love and friendship where hostility and alienation had reigned. It is Gods way, and in this we are bidden to be perfect, as our Heavenly Father is perfect. Will you try it? Will you begin by doing kind acts to those who have harmed you? Not because as yet you feel as you would, but because it is right. Then as you dig the trench in right doing, look up to God, and He will pour into your heart the warm gush of affection. If you sincerely will His will in this matter, and act as the Good Samaritan did to the Jew, and exercise faith, God will come to your aid while you clothe others and minister to them, you will find their hard heart melted, and yourselves clothed with the beautiful garments of salvation, and of a meek and quiet spirit, which in Gods sight is of great price. So, be encouraged, my friend! P.S. Here is a hymn of the Church; Renewal and Revival: Faithful Men by Twyla Paris. Enjoy! https://youtube/watch?v=PQYmMFLzMsA
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 13:39:03 +0000