Verse of the Day for September 11

Jesus builds this command in four steps, each harder than the last: Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.

Love is the general posture. Blessing is a word spoken. Doing good is an action. Praying is the most private of all, done where the enemy will never see it or thank you. The command moves inward, toward the heart.

Then he gives a reason drawn from the weather. he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good. God does this every morning. It is not a single gesture of reconciliation. It is a habit.

Forgiving someone can feel stirring at first. There is a moment of release, perhaps tears, perhaps a conversation that goes well. Then the feeling fades, and you still share an office or a family compound with them. The person has not changed. That is where this passage really begins.

Tomorrow when the sun comes up over your street, notice who else it is shining on. The neighbour who reported you. The relative who spoke against you. God is giving them the same light. Pray for them once, quietly, before you leave the house.

Pray for one difficult person where they will never know you did.

God sends rain on the unjust, and he sends it every season.