A Prayer for Your Enemies – Your Every day Prayer

A Prayer for Your Enemies
By Emily Rose Massey

“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do very good to all those who despise you, bless all those who curse you, pray for those people who mistreat you” (Luke 6:27-28, NIV).

A number of a long time ago, the Lord gave me a excellent chance to mentor and disciple a couple of younger ladies from a former church that my partner and I attended several years prior. It turned out that term began acquiring all-around that these younger ladies had been associating with me, and the pastors of this church did not approve. A person young girl was instructed that she necessary to disconnect from me right away for the reason that my husband and I were risky individuals…we were being identified as “wolves in sheep’s garments.” 

After the shock wore off from hearing these statements claimed about us, I realized I was confronted with two solutions of how to manage these accusations: make it possible for these text to embitter me towards my former pastors or lay down my offense at the foot of the cross, forgive, and pray for them. 

In one of Jesus’ sermons in Luke 6, He provides great wisdom to these who are recipients of hurtful text and steps from other people: “But to you who are listening I say: Enjoy your enemies, do very good to those who dislike you, bless all those who curse you, pray for these who mistreat you” (Luke 6:27-28, NIV).

A couple verses afterwards, He basically states that 1 should do unto other individuals what we would want to be carried out to us (Luke 6:31). As a single who is a peacekeeper by mother nature, I ordinarily battle when I know a person has a challenge with me. I am not a single to burn off bridges or cut persons off. Of class, there is such a point as boundaries, but I have always attempted to maintain my heart no cost from offense. I acknowledge that I have not often been in a position to shake off individuals stings from words spoken about me. Realizing that offense will undoubtedly arrive, I have to be swift to forgive and quick to pray for those people who mistreat me.

It is difficult to hold onto offense when you are purposely and deliberately praying for the individual who hurt you. It doesn’t suggest that we can constantly forget about the motion or phrases wielded towards us, but it does signify that we simply cannot keep on to it. A person of the ideal methods to guard our hearts in opposition to bitterness is to check with God to bless individuals who curse us. You will not have room in your heart for offense when you are approaching the throne of grace on behalf of that enemy. 

Unforgiveness is bondage It is a yoke that gradually tightens all over our necks and chokes the lifestyle out of us. Bitterness is like most cancers that spreads all through your entire overall body and impacts you totally and every thing and all people around you. We are offered quite a few options each solitary working day to choose the bait to become offended and hold grudges, but it is so crucial that we maintain onto Jesus and His potent Term – God’s excellent reality. 

I do not know who you could require to forgive. I really don’t know how deep the ache goes or how massive or tiny the offense might be. I never know how lengthy you have carried that burden with you, but I do know that you have to have to forgive, and you never have to do it with your have energy. God has provided you the Holy Spirit to enable you, to recover you, to change your coronary heart. Let’s request Him to assist us raise our enemies up to Him so that we can be free of charge and honor God.

Let’s pray:

Father,
I occur to You these days 1st and foremost with a grateful coronary heart that You would lavish Your mercy and appreciate upon me, anyone who has sinned from You, oh, Holy and righteous Creator God! Thank you for sending Your Son, Jesus, who stood in my area to die a loss of life that I deserved so that I could be forgiven, justified, and restored again to You to now be named Your kid. If I am keeping on to unforgiveness in opposition to anyone who has damage me or gravely sinned in opposition to me, I repent and forgive that human being quickly. I have no appropriate to harbor unforgiveness against anyone, and as Your baby, You call me to forgive some others simply because I have been forgiven by You. I choose to obey You, no subject how hard it may possibly be for me. I rely on Your Spirit will empower me to forgive and appreciate many others how You have forgiven and love me. Assistance me recover from the wounds that may possibly have been prompted by the fingers of other folks. I pray for their coronary heart that they would stroll in repentance and wander in forgiveness and know and rely on You as I do.
In Jesus’ identify, amen.

Image credit: ©Getty Images/PeopleImages