I have a friend, Jack, who was a successful businessman, entrepreneur a great person his whole life. He was one of the victims of the economy downfall a couple of years ago. It seemed like he had the world by the tale until "the crash" happened.
For over 40 years he was a perfect citizen. Paid his bills on time, trusted by others, church goin’ born again Christian, even a leader in 3 different churches at the highest level. After the stock market crashed everything changed. He went through a terrible 2 years. He started getting calls from creditors. They started out friendly and concerned then moved to downright nasty.
He was very open with the creditors about his situation every week for a while.
Then when the tide turned and went from understanding to hateful, attacking, degrading, questioning his itegrity; my friend started to have fun with some the callers. He asked them to look back at his record and a discussion that went something like this:
How long have I been a customer? 25 years
How many times have I been late on anything? our record show never?
O kay. I told you what I am doing, what I am going through, do you think my record shows that I am a stand up guy for the last 25 years? Yes?
I understand your desire to bring this issue to a close as soon as possible, based on my record with you for the last 25 years do you think I will make it right when my situation changes? Well Yes, but?
As I said I have Resumes out, trying to start a business but with the employment rate at 10% things are just not working out, no one hiring. So there comes a point when people stop listening and making demands on you that are totally ridiculous, with threats and intimidation. Jack would play games with them after repeated calls and asked them wht they would do? They could not awswer or would not answer the question.
Sometimes the callers would be laughing before the call was over, Jack tried to make them have a good day.
Even banks that would normally would have given you and equity line of credit, quit lending and have not started back. So you’re getting squeezed at every end.
Jack even told me of a situation with a family member on a business transaction. These family members had known each other for 37 years. One was going to sell an item to the other that involved a title. But, the transaction had to take place first, and then the paperwork would follow in 7-10 days. A deal was made the bank was notified. It was set. The next day the family purchaser called the seller, and was concerned that he was not going to have the title when he drove off and felt he was doing something illegal. He wanted to talk to the bank and make sure everything the other family member told him was true. Of course, the family member was hurt, because of the lack of trust, the one had for the other. There were words exchanged hurt feelings for years.
So in this society or family or church if one goes through hard times: Loss of job, Financial hardship, Business failure due to unforeseen economic disaster, stellar record for 50 years in everything, and all of the sudden the circumstances change does the friend all of the sudden have no integrity? Does it mean he cannot be trusted? Does it mean his word his no good? Does it mean all of the sudden you became a bad person? Did he wake up one day and his character did a 180 and all of the sudden it is gone? The day before the catastrophe happens they were fine upstanding citizens; the day after the calamity did they lose all of their values? Their principles? Their character? No! Not just no but, Hell No!
When somebody tries to curse you, intimidate you, treat you wrong, you had a bad break and you are trying to work through and come out of the situation. It does not matter if they try to pound all over you and try to make you shrink in fear.
Remember nothing can separate you from the love of God.
Rom 8:35-39.
35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As it is written:
"For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." 37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Nothing they say and nothing they do can take the blessing you have from God away from you. The blessing God put on you overrides every problem every obstacle don’t get discouraged your time is coming. They may get you down temporarily, but God has the last word.
There is nothing that has happened to you that can keep you from your God-given destiny, if you rise up, look to God and realize he is not through with you yet. The devil does not fight you for where you are the devil fights you for where you’re going. The devil knows when you are in your valley that is the time the biggest attacks come on you as a person God. The Devil knows if he can destroy you in the valley, he can keep you from fulfilling your God-given destiny. You are not a bad person; you are still the same person you were before the catastrophe. Don’t shrink in Fear! Stand in Faith! Jack never acted as a victim. He has always kept his attitude up and acted as a victor.
Back to family situation whether a brother in a family or a brother in Christ what should our response be?
1 John 3:17
17 Suppose someone sees a brother or sister in need and is able to help them. If he doesn't take pity on them, how can the love of God be in him?
Does the person that needs forgiveness have to ask for it, no he does not? Does the person that you are going to forgive have to be aware of it, no he does not? So someone treats you really bad and hurt you to the core do you forgive? I think yes! Forgiveness is more about the giver that the one being forgiven.
So someone, a family member, treats you really bad and hurt you to the core do you forgive? Yes!
Forgiveness is about the past, Trust is about the future. Do we forgive someone about the past, yes we do? Do we have to do talk to them and do business with them in the future, no we don’t? Forgiveness is a decision, not an emotion. Emotions follow decisions. Emotionally when the friend went through the hurt he could have, at first: #/?%@!*(%#$ and then #%@!&*^$ and then $%#@*(&$!, you know what I mean! Make sure you forgive yourself and then forgive the brother.
Jack told me, neither misguided opinions nor unjust criticism will alter his course. He said "those who do not understand his faith, his destiny, his core principles, his Christian values, and violate him as a man, can never be trusted again." He did not say he had not forgiven, he said they could never be trusted.
My friend Jack and his family are still going through some valleys, but he is a Good Man. I know he will come out on top. He is a winner in every way!
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