“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
Matthew 7:1-5

Dear God, this is the verse yesterday from My Utmost for His Highest. I don’t normally read his commentary before I start typing to you, but I read the first few sentences today. He had an interesting sentence in there: “There is a difference between retaliation and retribution.” He says that what Jesus is indicating in his different lessons is that we shouldn’t retaliate, but we should be aware that what goes around comes around.

I suppose the trick is to pull myself out of the retribution feedback loop by not retaliating. If someone is doing something wrong and I do not retaliate like I would normally want to then I am short-circuiting the natural order of things and exhibiting your love. After all, that’s what you’ve done with Jesus and your love for us. You love us unreasonably, and I am grateful for that.

I have a few relationships that I can gratefully say I stuck around even through what I perceived to be wrongs done to me. And after several years, I can say I’m glad I did. I’m glad I am not looking back now and thinking that I shouldn’t have let that relationship go 10 or 20 years ago. I haven’t always been perfect in those relationships. I’ve caused my share of pain as well. But I’m glad they are still there. Retribution is an interesting thing.

Father, help me to always be a source of mercy by drawing on the mercy you give me. Thank you for your mercy. Thank you for loving me. Now, please flow through me and take your love and mercy to others through my life.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen