Today I had damaging thoughts. Thoughts that damage the body and soul. I was praying as I was driving. I do a lot of driving and I have found it an excellent time to talk to God. Today, as I was praying my mind, began to wander. This is a problem that I battle with at times. I even wrote a blog back in July about how God is omnipresence. He is everywhere. We are not praying to a God that is far away. God is with us as we are praying. We should be talking to God as if He is right next to us, which He is.
I have found that when I am driving and praying, if I visualize that Christ is sitting in the passenger seat, listening to me. My prayer seems more real and meaningful. I know He is with me at all times.
Today I wasn’t doing that. I was tired and just going through the motions. My mind began to wander.
I found myself thinking about a couple, whose home I had worked on. They had taken advantage of me. I found out too late, that they are the kind of people that go through life getting everything they can, for nothing. I was thinking of what I should have done and said differently. I had gone from talking to God, to have unkind thoughts about someone, without even realizing it. When I realized what I was doing, I immediately asked God’s forgiveness.
We all have been wronged by others. It is just part of life. The problem comes when we dwell on those wrongs. Nothing good can come from it. Such thoughts lead to resentment, anger, bitterness and more. Many times these thoughts are directed at ourselves as well for letting it happen. Thoughts such as these are damaging to ourselves. They are not good for our physical or mental well-being.
More important such thoughts push us away from God. The ONLY healthy option for our physical, emotional and spiritual health, is to forgive those who have wronged us and move on. God said, “ Vengeance is Mine, I will repay” (Romans 12:19). Jesus said we are to forgive others, (Matthew 6:15). God wants us to forgive those who harm us, not get revenge. God did not tell us these things because He is concerned about those who do evil. Rather, He knows the damage such thinking does to ourselves. He loves us and wants what is best for us.
I have found the best way for me to forgive someone, is to pray for them. Today I prayed for that couple. God forgive me for having those self-damaging thoughts.
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As I mentioned in previous stories, we live on a lake in the Hiawatha National Forest in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. On a spring day, my wife Linda, had taken the paddle boat and was fishing along shore. She was fishing with worms for panfish and bass. She had hooked a bass about a foot long and was reeling it in when a northern pike grabbed it. The pike was about three feet long.
