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by Christine Crowley
She's everywhere you go - you can't seem to miss her. You're not even looking for her, yet she's the first one you spot in the crowd. As soon as you see her or hear her voice, there's a change in your attitude.
You find yourself hoping and yes, even praying, that she won't be at Bible study, or any activity that you plan to attend. She's done nothing to you. Nothing that should get to you like it does. But for some unknown reason everything she does and says irritates you! What's more, chances are she's not even aware of how you feel.
"Why do I feel this way?" you scream inside. "What has she done to make me feel this way?" These are difficult questions that need to be prayed about and answered. To get to the root of the issue, step back and consider:
- Is she a believer who is acting like an unbeliever?
- Is she causing division within the body?
If the answer to these questions is "no," the problem may not be with her, but within yourself. Since the problem may be with you, you need to ask yourself the following questions:
- Am I jealous of her?
- Do l feel threatened by her?
- Am I in competition with her?
After you answer the above questions, the next step in the process is to:
- Pray that you will see her through God's eyes.
- Pray for God to change your heart towards her.
- Pray for her daily.
Loving by faith
The next step is to begin working on your attitude. Remember, your heart will not likely change overnight. It will take time. But as you continue to pray and work at changing your attitude, God will honor your prayer. We change our attitude when we acknowledge that it needs to change, and have the desire to change it with the help of the Holy Spirit. How do we go about it?
- Spend time together one-on-one - getting to know her will help you understand her.
- Work together on a ministry project.
- Try to see the things about her that irritate you as positive things. For example, do you see her as being bossy? Why not see the strength in that, which is being assertive? As you pray and work on your attitude you will notice in time that you are not as annoyed with her as you have been in the past. You may even find yourself liking her.
The end result is that you will experience peace and not irritation - you will learn to love by faith. You may find a new friend, but most importantly, there will be unity in the body of Christ and God will be glorified.
Perhaps your boss, a fellow employee, your spouse, your children or your father or mother is on the list of those whom you will love by faith. Pray for each person. Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you with Christ's love for all of them. Then, seek to meet with them as you draw upon God's limitless, inexhaustible, overwhelming love for them by faith. Expect God to work through you! Watch Him use your smile, your words and your patience to express His love for each individual.
How exciting it is to have such a dynamic, joyful force available to us! And it all comes from our loving Savior, Jesus Christ, who explicitly promises in His Word all that we need. You need not guess, nor hope, nor wish. You can claim this love by faith, right now, on the basis of God's command to love and His promise to answer whenever you pray for anything according to His will. Why not make this prayer your own:
"Dear Father, I need You. I acknowledge that I have been directing my own life and that, as a result, I have sinned against You. I thank You that You have forgiven my sins through Christ's death on the cross for me. I now invite Christ to again take His place on the throne of my life. Fill me with the Holy Spirit as You commanded me to be filled, and as You promised in Your Word that You would do if I asked in faith. I now thank You for directing my life and for filling me with the Holy Spirit. Lord, You would never have commanded me to love had You not intended to enable me to do so. Therefore, right now, on the authority of Your commands for me to love and on the authority of Your promise to answer if I asked anything according to Your will, I personally claim Your love - the 1 Corinthians 13 kind of love - for You, for all people, and for myself. Amen."
If you prayed this prayer, we would love to hear about it!
~ Christine Crowley is a freelance writer and speaker who makes her home in Arizona. She teaches women's Bible studies, and serves on the women's council and missions committee in her local church.
