Win Them Over

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

Between the years of 1861-1865, the United States found itself in the midst of a bitter civil war over many serious matters including the issue of slavery. By the time the South surrendered, over 600,000 lives were lost. Many in the North were so embittered, they wanted the South to pay dearly.

At the end of the war, a group of Southerners gained an audience with President Abraham Lincoln. His gentle, kind and friendly personality quickly softened their hearts, and they left the interview with a deep respect for the President, their former, bitter enemy. Not long afterward, a northern congressman criticized Lincoln for "befriending the enemy." He suggested that they should have been hung as traitors instead of welcoming them.

I love Lincoln's response. He said, "Am I not destroying my enemies by making them my friends?"

There is a great lesson to be learned here. As a Christ follower you will have your share of enemies. In bitterness and anger you can seek their demise. But there is a better way. Retaliate - not with hatred but Spirit-empowered love! Win them over. There is so much work to be done, we need all the help we can get.

Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:20-21