Loving Others Making Amends (4)
Thursday May 19, 2016
… we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world filled with God’s righteousness. And so, dear friends, while you are waiting for these things to happen, make every effort to be found living peaceful lives that are pure and blameless in his sight. (2 Peter 3:13-14 NLT)
God has a way forward for us, and when we are following His principles, we will be concerned not only for our own well-being but also for the well-being of those around us. Getting rid of all bitterness and choosing to forgive those who have harmed us, and forgiving ourselves for the harm we have caused, is the way to accelerate our recovery in our new life in Christ.
In addiction, those closest to us could not escape being harmed by the consequences of our actions. If we were married, our addictive lifestyle harmed our spouse. God says that our lives are intertwined with the lives of those with whom we are joined together in marriage and we literally become one flesh. The union may have been a healthy or dysfunctional one. In either case, we were united by the vows we made. The behavior of one spouse always affects the other. Any time we fail to love sacrificially, or fail to show respect for our spouse, we are hurting them and ourselves. Sure, they may have hurt us too but we’re dealing with our own issues as we make our list of those we have harmed and become willing to make amends.
Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. (Ephesians 5:21-22, 25 NIV) Sometimes our nearest and dearest are the hardest to make amends to because they are aware of the outcome of our past irresponsible behaviour. Regardless, we need to acknowledge the harm we have caused and seek to make amends. God is in the restoration business and if we follow His guidance, we can leave all the consequences with Him.
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear (Psalm 46:1-2a NIV)
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