Thought of the Day 07.11.08

When God does or says something we don’t understand, how do we react? Well, at first we might get angry or disagree, but eventually we get around to reminding ourselves of first principles. God is good. God is loving. God is wise. And God knows more than we do. Then we try to find some way to interpret the event or idea favorably. Sometimes we can’t think of any, so we settle for reminding ourselves that it can be tough to understand God.

This active willingness to be charitable is called love and respect. In contrast, we do the opposite with our enemies, interpreting their every word and deed as the product of malice, ignorance, foolishness, or hatred. Whereas we deliberately try to think of the best case scenario for God’s motives, we naturally imagine the worst case scenario for those we hate.

So then the real question is: If we’re honest, which disposition do we use most often with our spouses? And which one should we use if we truly love and respect them as opposed to treating them like our enemies?