Bless Them?

          Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.  (Romans 12:14-16)

 

Here’s a tough one. According to John Trent, there are five components to a blessing: appropriate meaningful touch, spoken words, attaching high value, special future, and genuine commitment. So, somehow, we are supposed to bless people who persecute us. In fact, Paul stressed that idea by repeating it and contrasting it with the negative. We’re supposed to bless… and…curse…not. And we’re to do this not just to people we enjoy being around, but also to those who go out of their way to try to destroy us.

At the top of the list of challenges is the appropriate meaningful touch. In our society, we may never had met the person who persecutes us. They may be thousands of miles away. Even if the person is in our presence, they may not permit a touch. They might think any touch inappropriate. Touching is tricky. We used to shake hands and I think that might be a good option, if we can learn to do so naturally in our germophobic society. Here's an option that goes against everything that comes naturally to me. Look them in the eye – in a way that is neither hostile nor suggestive. At the very least, look at their faces. That touch or look should express our high value and commitment. Smiles and waves may be good substitutes when touch isn’t possible. Give them a “visual touch” instead of a tactile one.

Next, we’re to speak words that attach high value, a special future, and our genuine commitment. I can’t imagine how we can do these things if someone is beating us up or trying to destroy our lives. But one of the things I’ve mentioned in the past is the idea of learning to do things in smaller situations. Maybe we can think of no way to speak blessing to someone who is harming us, but if we learn to do so when people are neutral toward us, perhaps that will guide us when they’re being negative.

Again, what of the normal greetings? Consider fairly typical greetings.

Good morning                Good afternoon              Good evening

Have a nice day              Nice to see you               Good to see you

          Thanks…                       Come again.                   See you soon

          All of these are generic, but they’re a good place to start, especially if we don’t know the person well enough to come up with something highly personalized, or don’t have the time to compose something formal.  One of the things I say to people as they check out at the garden center is “Happy planting.”

          The last challenge is genuine commitment. As with the others, it’s easy to think this needs to be something huge, significant, or special. We bless our spouses and children by dedicating our lives to them and their well-being. As I think about this one, some history comes to mind. Just before the American Revolution, British soldiers killed some colonists. Samuel Adams represented the British soldiers in court. Other lawyers have talked about taking on cases because everyone deserves a good defense.

          We can’t commit to the things that people commit themselves to, but we can commit to treating them as we want to be treated. We can commit to doing what is right for that person, even if they disagree with us. We can commit to be fair, honest, and just, even if they aren’t. And again, as we learn to do this over little things, we’ll be better prepared to do them in bigger things.