[Excerpt from Beyond Pretend: A Sheep’s Guide to the Universe!]
God is a good place to be. Always.
- God is a safe place to hide, ready to help when we need him. We stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom, courageous in sea storm and earthquake, Before the rush and roar of oceans, the tremors that shift mountains… (Psalms 46:1-3 MSG).
Bad alternative medicine …
But we don’t always take our grief and our hurt to God. Sometimes we take matters into our own hands. We have too much pride to bow, so instead we strike back. We get mad and we get even. We treat ourselves to a big, delicious drink of vengeance.
- Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY,” says the Lord (Romans 12:17–19 NASB95).
Maybe we could call the following …
Eve’s Garden of Eden theology: If it looks good and tastes good, then I have a right to it. Just like Adam and Eve in Genesis three, when we choose a direction contrary to God’s truth, then we step away from the sovereign care of a holy and loving God.
- When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it (Genesis 3:6 NIV84).
That the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil was tasty and beautiful was never up for debate. Of course it was excellent. God created it. And that vengeance can look good and taste good is likewise not up for debate. Vengeance can be delicious but eating this tasty fruit moves us away from the will of God and the life he would have for us. No exceptions. And that means you.
Know this …
Wounded sheep that do not let the shepherd heal them will go somewhere to relieve the pain. And very often the healing potion first off the shelf is vengeance, distilled and perfected in the ways of humans for millennia, and often taking the form of gossip. Wound for wound, hurt for hurt, our salve is our vengeance.
And now evil has won the day.
- Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Romans 12:21 NIV84).
Let God heal your wounds, or run in the ways of the fallen.
Trusting God we are able “stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom,” but refusing to bring our wounds before God, in our fear and insecurities, we run in the ways of the fallen. Our medicine is now their pain. Gossip is a common example of being overcome by evil. I believe (hope) that recognizing this “other-side-of-the-coin” relationship between running to God for refuge versus gossip, we may be able to make better choices as we struggle with the agony of life.
The universal acceptance of gossip…
Part of the problem with gossip is its universal acceptance and its effectiveness, even in the church. Bringing some sense of justice into your world can feel good for a little while. You will fall into this overcoming evil if you do not make a conscious decision to trust God with the events of your life, taking your wounded heart and soul to him instead of fending for yourself, giving God the opportunity to show you his greatness.
A very clear choice…
Trust God and taste his goodness, or trust ourselves and taste evil.
- Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see– how good GOD is. Blessed are you who run to him (Psalms 34:8 MSG).
