How To Get Along with Others: Pt. 1 — Morning Devotions

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Transcript

During one of the wars, an American military unit hired a local boy to cook and clean for them. Now, they were a bunch of jokesters, you know, they wanted to play practical jokes, and they took advantage of this boy. They smeared Vaseline on the stove handles so that’d get all over his hands when he went to the stove. They put buckets of water over the door so that when he walked in, he gets soaked.

They even nailed his shoes to the floor during the night. So day after day, the young boy took the brunt of these practical jokes. He didn’t say anything. Finally, the men felt guilty about what they were doing, so they met up with him and said, Look, we know these pranks are not funny. We’re sorry. We’re never going to take advantage of you again. And the boy smiled and said, Any more sticky on the stove? No. No more water on the door. No. No more water on the door. No more nailing my shoes on the floor? No.

OK, said the boy, no more spit in the soup.

Not a very nice story, but it’s got a good lesson about revenge and retaliation.

My guess is that each of us has had to grapple with this matter. “You know, I’d love to get even with someone who’s hurt me, or I want to pay back something that was said about me that was wrong. I was very hurt over that.” That’s the sort of thing I’m talking about. We live among people and sometimes things go wrong, and it’s easy to naturally get upset or angry over malicious things that are said. So the question is today and again tomorrow, I want to look at this:

Is it OK to retaliate with the feelings of the hatred that we might have?

It’s all about dealing with relationships. It reminds me, someone has said the more I get to know the human race, the more I love my dog.

And I think that most of us need help when it comes to our relationships. Is there someone in your life, for example, that’s brought you grief? Well, as is the case so often, the Bible has some tremendous words of encouragement, and just now I’m looking at Romans 12:15.

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This is what the apostle Paul said about relationships with other people.

He said, when others are happy, be happy with them, and when they’re sad, be sad.

It’s a great statement. It’s really an invitation, I think, to share in the blessings and burdens of others’ life and their experience. But to be very honest, it can be really hard to enter into somebody else’s experience, particularly if we have the feeling of envy.

If your friend, for example, inherited a million dollars, can you truthfully say to that friend, oh look, I’m so happy for you.

The story is told of two writers who were very jealous of each other. Their animosity was obvious, and one of the writers eventually wrote a book that was very popular and became an immediate bestseller. And when the two of these guys met at a party, the other man said, I bought your book the other day. It’s a good read. Who wrote it for you?

He was a bit upset. The other man anyway, he came back and said, Well, who read it to you?

We should also admit that sometimes when someone is hurting inside we’re thinking, well, yeah, they deserve what they got. The Bible says in Proverbs 17:5, actually, he who mocks the poor shows contempt for their makeup. Whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished. So in order to rejoice in somebody else’s joy, we need to get rid of some things: jealousy, and we need to mourn with people who mourn, get rid of that judgmental spirit that sometimes we have.

Instead of being indifferent to the emotions that other towards other people, we need to show what’s called empathy. Someone has said that a sorrow shared is but half a trouble, and a joy that shared is joy made double.

I think it’s true that Paul, the great apostle, had had tremendous compassion, for he said, when others are weak, he said, I am weak. When others stumble into sin, I hurt for them. That’s in 2 Corinthians 11:29. So Christian fellowship, that’s what it’s all about. It’s caring for people.

And in this world where people often couldn’t care less, we should care more.

The story is told of a little boy with a big heart. His next door neighbour was an older gentleman whose wife had died. And when the boy saw the man cry, he went into the man’s yard. He just climbed up into his lap and sat there. His mother asked what he was doing, and the little boy said nothing. I just helped him cry.

You know that’s true. That’s, that’s what the friends of Job did at the beginning when they sat with Job in silence for 7 days. Unfortunately they just couldn’t keep quiet, but the idea then is to rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn.

Let’s Pray

Thank you, Lord, that we have the opportunity to help others. Amen.

(How To Get Along with Others: Pt. 2 — Morning Devotions)

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