Bullying - No Age Limit

“Here’s another old saying that deserves a second look: ‘Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.’ Is that going to get us anywhere? Here’s what I propose: ‘Don’t hit back at all.’ If someone strikes you, stand there and take it. If someone drags you into court and sues for the shirt off your back, gift wrap your best coat and make a present of it. And if someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously." Matthew 5:38-40 (The Message)

I get so tired of hearing about bullying.  It seems like everywhere we turn, we're hearing about it.  I am not saying it doesn't exist and it's not serious, I just wish it would stop.  (On the other hand, I also get tired of it being an excuse for bad behavior.)

What I am starting to realize is that bullying doesn't go away at a certain age.  I see it now even as an adult.  The hard part for me is that adults should really know better.

It is so hard to turn the cheek, as we're commanded to do.  It never gets easier.  I'm a sassy one, I've been told, and it's really difficult for me not to spout off sometimes when I really want to.  (Now where does Madolyn get this nasty trait?)

Many times I think...Oh, it would feel so good to make them hurt like I am (or the way they are making someone else hurt).  God says, No, do unto others as you would have done unto you.  

I wonder...Don't they understand the hurt they are causing?  God says, Forgive them and love them anyway.

I ponder...Oh, if only they would get a little taste of what they're dishing out.  God says, Sarah, do not repay evil with evil.

I repeat in my mind the old saying...What comes around goes around.  And God whispers, My child, do not wish harm upon another.

Many times, I start to write, text something or start punching numbers to make a call...and God reminds me, take a deep breath, think about what you're doing, and turn that chubby cheek of yours.

Unfortunately, bullying exists whether you're 5, 15 or 45 years old.  I know it's easier said than done, but I wish we could all just spread God's love and forgiveness instead of tearing down one another.

All you need is Love...

Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.                                 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NLT)


Today is Valentine's Day and for many, it is just another day.  I saw several comments on Facebook this morning referring to the fact that you should show love every day, there shouldn't have to be a day set aside to tell someone you love them, blah, blah, blah.  I don't disagree with that necessarily, but I don't really have a problem with there being a day to celebrate love either.


I was thinking about love, and what it means to a Christian.  I think love is the backbone for God's people.  Many people think that going to church, tithing, donating, volunteering, taking meals, transporting people to appointments, roofing a house, supporting an orphan, etc., is good Christian service, and it is.  But doing them without love makes all that good stuff almost pointless.  They will be empty acts of kindness.  Some will even see through the good deed.


There is a Christian song out right now called "Love Does" by Brandon Heath.  Just thinking about those two words made me realize something important.  Love is an action word.  I love that simple two-word phrase: Love does. 


Have you ever done something out of obligation and just hated every minute of it?  I know have, and I realized later that the reason I didn't enjoy it or feel good about it was because I wasn't doing it out of love, I was doing it out of obligation...to soothe my soul.  Being a Christian isn't about doing what makes us feel good, it's about doing things for others in Jesus' name, to show Christian love.  You can attend all the church functions you want and perform all kinds of goodness, but without the greatest thing of all - Love - you will be empty inside.  God is Love.  There is not one without the other.


I even ask myself, can you be a Christian without knowing love?  Hmm, I don't see how because the core of our belief is that simple and popular verse, John 3:16.  "For God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish but have everlasting life."  I believe there are Christians who may feel unloved on a earthly level, but no matter what, we are all loved.


A couple years ago we had the contemporary Christian Band, For King & Country at our fairgrounds at the Elevate Concert.  Last year they put out a song that I think sums everything up perfectly.


Proof of Your Love - For King & Country
If I sing but don't have love
I waste my breath with every song
I bring an empty voice, a hollow noise.
If I speak with a silver tongue
Convince a crowd but don't have love
I leave a bitter taste with every word I say


CHORUS:  So let my life be the proof,
The proof of Your love
Let my love look like You and what You're made of
How You lived, how You died
Love is sacrifice
So let my life be the proof,
The proof of Your love


If I give
To a needy soul but don't have love then who is poor?
It seems all the poverty is found in me.


CHORUS


When it's all said and done
When we sing our final song
Only love remains
Only love remains


[Monologue based on 1 Corinthians 13)]
If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love,
I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate.
If I speak God's word with power, revealing all of His mysteries
and making everything as plain as day,
and if I have faith to say to a mountain jump
and it jumps but I don't love I'm nothing.
If I give all I earn to the poor or even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr,
but I don't love I've gotten nowhere.
So, no matter what I say, no matter what I believe,
no matter what I do, I'm bankrupt without love.


Simply put, all we need is love.  Happy LOVE Day!