“Guilty!”—that’s my plea and I’m ashamed of it. When it comes to feelings of revenge for injustices, I’ve often said,”I feel like the Dirty Harry of preachers. They say, “confession is good for the soul” and I’m sure that’s right, but it’s also very painful at times. I’m glad the Bible says,”Be ye angry”–we need that imperative, it’s the “sin not” part that gives me trouble. We are often tempted to lash-out, fight-back, get-even, etc. when some injustice is done. “It’s not fair!” we often say, and we’re usually right. It’s our response that is often wrong.

An example of this is found in this recent statement by Quanell X regarding a “not guilty” verdict in the Andrew Blomberg trial. He said,”I think the community has the right to voice their displeasure however they see fit, and whatever the community response is, I believe it’s appropriate”. WRONG! That’s the last thing we need at a time like this. Really Mr. X?–“however they see fit, and whatever the community response is—appropriate”? You’ve got to be kidding! Seems like I remember some responses that involved rioting, looting, beatings, and arson. Is that what you’re advocating? That doesn’t sound very just to me. My mama taught me,”Two wrongs don’t make a right”.

It isn’t my purpose to discuss the jurors “not guilty” verdict in this article, but to address the problem of seeking revenge. I can think of many instances where, in my opinion, justice wasn’t served ( O. J. comes to mind), but that doesn’t give us the right to respond as we “see fit”. What if everyone did that?  We live in a fallen world. Confusion and corruption is everywhere we look and much worse than we know–we just see the tip of the ice-berg. Innocent people often get hurt and the bad guys often seem to come out on top. We see this in all walks of life—government, military, law enforcement agencies, courts, and even in churches. And, it’s very disappointing.

Like most people, my initial reaction to injustice is to desire revenge. Although restrained by the law and the fear of punishment, my feelings are not always such as they should be. I often have to admit that I am guilty. I also have to ask for help in dealing with these ill-feelings. In doing that, the best thing I can do is to remind myself of what God said and did.

Regarding what He said, there is no better portion of God’s word than Romans 12:17-19,”Recompense no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” None of us have the right to ignore this command.

Concerning what He did, I’m reminded of Romans 5:8,”But God commendeth his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Isn’t that amazing? It helps me in dealing with the injustices of others to be reminded of my own sinfulness and the fact that God loves me unconditionally. Am I not to love others as Christ loved me? If I do there is then no place for revenge.

As a Christian I have an obligation to “take wrong” and allow myself “to be defrauded”(1 Cor. 6:7), to forgive as I’ve been forgiven (Eph. 4:32), and to try to “live peaceably with all men”(Rom. 12:18). It’s not easy. We can’t do it without God’s help, but God’s will is always right, best, and safest. You can respond to injustice “however” you see “fit”, but you had better remember that there are consequences for doing so. Doing wrong just makes matters worse. There is already far too many cases of injustice without you adding to it by seeking revenge. When you disobey God you are just as sinful as the person who wronged you. What gives you the right to condemn them? Since I am not God, I best leave that to Him. He gets it right every time. Instead of getting angry because others mistreated us we ought to think about our offense against God. Talk about injustice all you please, I’ll tell you what is really unjust–our disobedience to God. That’s as unfair as it gets. Think about it!

It’s really useless–not even Mr. Webster can capture the essence of motherhood. If we used nothing but the dictionary to define “mother” we would get a very incomplete picture. Being a mother involves much more than giving birth to a child, although that in itself is no minor matter. It is with much discomfort and great pain that she brings her child into this world—not something everyone would enjoy, but she does. Mothers, in fact, welcome their children into the world with a radiate joy that seems impossible considering what they went through. Now, that seems like contribution enough, but her work has just begun.

Although she has only two hands and feet, two ears and eyes, and a limited amount of physical strength, like everybody else, she has much more to do than most. Mothers have a vast array of duties to fulfill, yet she has only 24 hours in a day like everyone else. How she is able to get so much done is a mystery. Some would call it a miracle.

In spite of her best planning, which she is very good at, unexpected things happen. Often it is in the middle of the night, while others are sleeping and she is exhausted, yet she responds without a second thought. At other times, day and night, it is everything from trips to school to emergency room visits at the hospital. All this mind you is in addition to her regular chores. Only she could give you that list because the rest of us never really see all that she does–but we would quickly notice it if she didn’t.

Both her husband and children reap the benefits of her labor, but they can’t possibly understand all she does. Only God is aware of all she has endured and accomplished, and He is keeping close records! You and I could never fully repay her, although we usually could do much better than we do, but God can and will. Dear mother fret not because you don’t get the attention, assistance and appreciation you deserve, your labor is not in vain!

Your day, the real Mother’s Day, will come and you will finally and fully recognized and rewarded for all you’ve done. Until then I pray you will find God’s grace sufficient to see you through the toughest job on earth–the ministry of a mother. Not until you stand before Christ will you receive the fulness of joy for a job well done. And we will all sing together,”It was worth it all!”. Think about it!

OK–we all know what comes next. With the President and Vice-President publicly declaring their support of same-sex marriage, the next step is to redefine marriage and make same-sex “marriage” lawful, and unlawful to speak out against.

Gay U.S. Rep. Barney Frank is well known for asking: “How will my same-sex marriage harm your marriage?” This question is meant to be a show-stopper, shutting the mouths of all those who oppose gay marriage. Well, it won’t work. Some of us are not going to roll over and play dead. We are going to speak out.And anyone with an ounce of sense, which isn’t everyone, knows his reasoning is flawed.

To answer Barney’s question–Your same-sex marriage won’t affect my marriage at all. However, neither would my marriage be affected if you and your partner decided to beat the snot out of each other, or ever slit one another’s throat. But the point of this debate isn’t about your private relationship–wrong as it is. The debate has to do with redefining marriage for everyone in our nation. What gives you the right to insist that your perverted relationship be the standard by which all marriages are defined. Shall we use your reasoning to approve marriage between a 21 year-old-man and a 5 year-old-girl, because he wants her? Or how about those given to beastiaity? Do you see where this leads? Once we break away from the mooring of God’s Word we are at the mercy of public opinion’s raging sea, and it ends in shipwreck.

So, Barney, if I want to beat my wife, how does that affect your same-sex “marriage”? It’s no skin off your nose! How then could you object to us making a law to legalize wife-beating? After all, there’s a lot of guys who would jump at the chance to join “the wives beater club”.

Glenn T. Stanton said it well:”Same-sex ‘marriage’ is not just about one’s personal marriage. It is fundamentally about how we define and understand marriage, families, and humanity itself. And for the first time in the history of our nation, religious freedom is being asked to move to the back of the bus. And the reason is to make room for sexual and familial experimentation”.

We need some folks like Rosa Parks with the conviction and courage to not give up our seat –vacating the place our nation has occupied since its inception and disobeying the principles of God’s Word. It will be interesting to see who stands against this assault on the family and how they vote in November. Think about it!