Upside Down World

I was sitting in the pew, puffed up like an old toad. Madder than a wet hen, contemplating my strategy for speaking my mind. I was justified. I had had some proprietary information stolen from me by another real estate agent. The plan was to give her a piece of my mind after church. She had acted imperiously. Now it was my turn. Ken had deacon duties in the back, so I was all alone on my row with my thoughts. Normally I'm up front playing my flute, but it was in the shop that week...so I got the rare opportunity to sing along with the hymns. They were like cardboard in my mouth as I meditated on my game plan. The pastor's prayers seemed far away. I was marking time, waiting on justice.

Pastor opened the Book and announced his first point: "Do Not Take Revenge." He then opined about how revenge belongs to the Lord, how God is our shield and our grace, and how we are to look to Him for justice. If that weren't bad enough, point two was this: "Do Good to Those Who Mistreat You." Don't return evil for evil. Do good to your enemies. 

How did that man get into my journal?

I've heard these truths since childhood. I've seen and known the reality of them. I've experienced the goodness of God where I deserved hell. Sure, I know stuff. We all know what is supposed to be right. It's a whole 'nother thing to get slapped in the face with it. I was reminded about Jesus, how He was tortured and put on a cross by folks who thought they could make the truth go away, the hard things they didn't want to hear. He was speaking love, grace, forgiveness, but they weren't listening. They only heard the parts that made them uncomfortable. Repent. Turn. Believe. Bend the knee. Turn the cheek. His ways are not our ways. As I laid down my pride right there, my heart cried and then was free. Afterward, I laughed and told our pastor how he was meddlin'. He encouraged me to remember that the Lord was my shield and my grace. 

Ken and I mosied on over to lunch, where my phone rang as soon as I sat down. It was the imperious agent who had taken over the listing and stolen my intellectual property. She was desperate, in despair, almost crying. Someone had come in and robbed the house, taking the valuables left there. The owners were livid, trying to find someone to blame. It was terrible....two people had come in with an agent, one stealing the deadbolt key out of the back door while the other one distracted the realtor. 

My only job at that point was to comfort the gal. I had just sat through a life lesson that I will never forget. I love nothing more than a good Bruce Willis movie where the bad guys lose and justice gets served, but God doesn't do it in our order. There are lots of bad things that happen on this earth, far worse than anything I've yet to experience. God doesn't miss a one. We may not see it in our lifetime, but He will make all things right in the end. Not a sparrow falls without His notice.