Driving home a few days ago, after dropping off my youngest child at school, I was thinking about something hurtful that had happened. I quickly made a decision to forgive and as I did, a scripture suddenly came to mind. In 2 Timothy 2:24, it says, "The Lord's bondservant must not argue, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient WHEN wronged..."
As I drove along, I began to ponder this thought...and it became obvious to me that this scripture didn't say IF you are wronged but WHEN you are wronged. At some point, sooner or later, we will be wronged and we will be faced with a decision: to obey God's word to be patient, kind and forgiving WHEN wronged or to give in to anger or resentment and the unforgiveness that is sure to follow.
When the word says to "be patient when wronged," it is not declaring that the perpetrator of the wrongful deed is innocent, but simply that we have a choice in how we react to that wrongdoing.
God says in His Word (John 14:23,24) that IF we love Him, we will do what He commands.
So, ultimately, IF we love God, we will choose to be patient WHEN wronged.
