Ill Will

Why do we strive to maintain that Christian ideal? Is not grace enough for us all? God's grace is indeed sufficient for you and me; but what about our witness? The life we live is the witness we present to the world at all times. Even those of you given to loquaciousness do not talk all the time, whatever it may seem like to your critics. We have a life that shows the hand of Jesus to the world. How we show His hand at work in us is through the life changed toward that Christian ideal. Yup, we may not make it until we see Jesus face to face, but we can keep on trying. Why the struggle? Ill will.

Think of a negative example, and this one is just too easy, the Microsoft Windows operating system on your computer. Every time that update interrupts the video you were watching, you get a little of that ill will bending toward the big company out in Redmond. Each time your computer fails to start or worse must be rebuilt and have the operating system reinstalled, you get a bit of ill will toward those [insert your favorite derogatory name here] who programmed such an unstable system. Every time you find out that your working computer is just too old for the latest version or that they will no longer support your old version of Windows, you get a bit of that ill will bent over that way. Ill will that can build up into an overall impression that grinds down trust.

We have that same problem. All the good we do can be wiped out by a moment of weakness. All the good will we built up may be eliminated by a few incidents that stand out in the wrong way. That is why we strive toward a Christian ideal. We know that God's Holy Spirit must change us from the inside for this to work, but we have work to do as well. This job is hardly easy; we have a desire for the sinful things that just hasn't gone away quite yet. However, we do not labor alone. Praise God for our striving, and our Lord Jesus who strengthens us!

Bucky