You know the rest of that tag line. (If you don't, keep reading). I was reading in Rom 12 this morning (I kid you not, this is the slowest devotional study I have ever done in my life.) and came to verse 14. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. This is the hardest thing for most people to do. Bless, don't curse. There are a few who are good at blessing others but I couldn't tell you if I have ever met a master on this one.
Blessing means to find something worth praising in another AND refusing to curse to them or about them. Fault finding is a national pastime for most. Especially during this political election season, candidates are expected to find faults in their opponents. To say something good, something positive to another person is expected of us. To ask God to bless or to do something good for another person can sometimes be tough.
Cursing comes more easily to us, doesn't it? This means to devote to destruction. If God curses something, He has the power to destroy it. (The fig tree for example) It also means that we can ask God to curse something and destroy it on our behalf. However, before you take a good look at your boss and call fire down from heaven, remember what Jesus said. "Do not judge, or you too will be judged." Matthew 7:1. Cursing also means to express yourself in a profane, violent and reproachable manner to another.
Have I blessed people? Yes I have, but I have to be honest when I say that I haven't done it enough. I am going to work on this today and see what happens. Not only do I want to know how I will react, but how will people react around me?
Have I ever cursed something or someone? Again, yes I have. Sometimes it was just a fit of anger directed at them for some reason. Sometimes I did feel that it was the will of God to ask Him to destroy something. Let me explain before you start your email here. A few years ago a young couple came into my office wanting premarital counseling. Immediately the Holy Spirit let me know that this wasn't in God's will. After conversing with them a few moments I quickly agreed with God. This was a very bad idea. But they were committed to seeing this through. No amount of counsel on my part could get them to see what everyone else could see. I asked God to kill this idea, this engagement off. Kill it and kill it dead. 2 weeks later this couple came for their next pre-marital counseling appt. ready to kill each other. Not exactly sure what happened, all I know was God had destroyed it. They cancelled the engagement.
The bible says that the power of life and death are in the tongue. So if you can't say anything good about someone, don't say anything at all.
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