Pulling Up the Bitter Weeds

A Prayer for Riding Ourselves of All Bitterness and Resentment by Scotty Ward Smith - A prayer we can ll pray, and need to pray. (Hebrews 12:15, Job 5:2, Ephesians 4:31-32)

Dear heavenly Father, these Scriptures cut to the chase and bring conviction to our hearts. We are your beloved daughters and sons, but today we are also your “busted” daughters and sons; for resentment comes to us as quickly as someone steals our parking place, or eats the saran-wrapped piece of cake we hid in the “frig,” or fails to include us in some social event. It’s amazing how quickly a little slight can launch us into a big spite. Have mercy on us, Lord, and grant us fresh grace, thicker skin and bigger hearts.

But Father, being slighted is one thing, but being assaulted by the betrayals and failures, deceit and lies, attacks and abuse of others, is an altogether different matter. These aren’t things to shake off, but deep wounds, broken hearts, and incredible pain to bring to your throne of grace. You’re not calling us to denial, but to yourself. Have mercy on us, Lord, have big mercy; and grant us wisdom, strength and tons of grace.

Father—through the power of your Holy Spirit, the truth of the gospel, and the gift of community, don’t let our appropriate anger morph into destructive revenge. Don’t let our raw hurts become a band of vigilante marauders, not just bent on getting even, but upping the ante—repaying harm for harm, evil for evil, and death for death.

Don’t let our vulnerable hearts become gardens for the planting of roots of resentment and bushes of bitterness; and keep us from medicating our pain foolishly. Father, as Jesus has forgiven us, so help us to want to forgive others. Write stories of redemption and restoration with the ink of our hurt and your grace. So very Amen we pray, in Jesus’ tender and triumphant name.

Twitter Updates

Haven't done one of these in a while, so, without further delay, here's some Twitter highlights.

RT @LifeVerse: Without God's Word as a lens, the world warps. Ann Voskamp

RT @DailyKeller: Our bad things turn out for good. Our good things can never be lost. And the best things are yet to come. 

RT @MarloTWells: To love means loving the unlovable. To forgive means pardoning the unpardonable.~GK Chesterton

 RT @PastorTullian: Whatever we may mean by “Christian growth,” it is ultimately this: less faith in me, more faith in God.

 RT @Calvary__Tweets: "God sends no one away empty - except those who are full of themselves." - D.L. Moody

 RT @RealEricGeiger: Worship gatherings rooted in the gospel are not always spectacular, but they are always supernatural. #CreatureoftheWord

RT @thepearlyg8s: God doesn't care what you have, so long as He has you!  

RT @daneortlund: What old resentment are you coddling instead of bathing in the gospel? (God's forgiven YOU for crying out loud!)

 RT @LeeSmith_1: The beginning of love for [others] is learning to listen to them. Bonhoeffer

 RT @theResurgence: “Grace is given to heal the spiritually sick, not to decorate spiritual heroes.” – Martin Luther

 RT @leebezotte: "we never pray for folks we gossip about, and we never gossip about the folk for whom we pray!" - Leonard Ravenhill