Tip of My Iceberg

photo courtesy of Kevin Schmid on Unsplash

People will hurt other people.

Our humanity, no matter how much we long to believe we have others’ best interests in mind, is broken.

It’s not my custom to comment extensively on world affairs; there is nothing new happening that hasn’t happened before. We just know about it quicker.

When Hamas began an attack against Israel on this past Saturday morning, the unexpected horror became more than people wanted to believe. Over a hundred hostages have been taken back into Gaza–women, children, the elderly. Not all of whom are Israelis.

The Supernova music festival was going on, with thousands of young people attending, celebrating through the night.

Just after dawn, rockets were seen overhead and sounds of gunfire permeated the group. People began to fall as they were shot by Hamas fighters who were gunning down people at the festival, even those who tried to hide in a bomb shelter.

The world is shocked and outraged by such news. Over two thousand people have died in both Israel and Gaza, most of them innocent bystanders who have done nothing to aggravate anyone’s government. People who have been living with immediate concerns of providing for families and doing their jobs.

War is unfair.

Life is unfair.

After all we’ve witnessed in Ukraine, Syria, and the multitude of other ongoing wars around the world, it’s possible we’ve become somewhat calloused to the ugliness of people’s inhumanity to other people. After all, in America alone there are countless people killed daily for no other reason then they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Does that mean we should harden our hearts, turn our heads, and ignore the hurt others experience? Do we deny the pain of those around us because we don’t want to get involved?

We should pray for our enemies.

Sounds absurd, doesn’t it? Pray for those who intentionally hurt us or those we love? It makes no sense.

Unless it’s what God calls us to do.

Jonah, the gentleman who was famously swallowed by a big fish in the Bible, didn’t want to go to Ninevah to preach the good news to them because he didn’t want them redeemed. He was bitter about all the bad the Ninevites had done to Israel.

“So he complained to the Lord about it: ‘Didn’t I say before I left home that You would do this, Lord? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that You are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. You are eager to turn back from destroying people. Just kill me now, Lord! I’d rather be dead than alive if what I predicted will not happen.’” Jonah 4:2-3

When Jonah told all those in Ninevah that they needed to repent and trust God, they did exactly that. Jonah’s anger rose up because he wanted them dead, not redeemed.

God had other plans for His people. For all are made in His image.

Even Jesus, while He hung on the cross, having been beaten and tortured horrifically, cried out to God on behalf of those who hurt Him.

“Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.’” Luke 23:34

It’s easy to get angry and hold grudges. Forgiveness takes strength and courage that only God can provide.

We may not be in the midst of a war, but we all know what it feels like to be marginalized, ignored, or rejected. If we choose to treat those who treat us poorly with a sense of compassion, such a decision could change the way we think about those people.

Forgiveness and love. They both go a long way to righting wrongs.