Today, someone destroyed our mailbox at the church. They tore
the big box completely off its wooden plank, busting up the wood, which was bolted
down on top of a concrete base. It would have taken quite a bit of work to do that.
It would have to be done by hand. It couldn’t have just been a car hitting it
by accident. And so, it was obviously on purpose.
Now why did someone take the time to do that? I guess they
were just relieving some stress. Maybe it was personal or church related. I don’t
know. I told my wife about it, and she and I agreed it was just a petty
aggravation. Of course, it was frustrating to me. Someone was spreading their
own petty aggravation to me and it gave me petty aggravation. It would take
some time and money to fix. And considering my lack of skills, I’d have to get
someone else to do it. What a bother! As if didn’t have enough to concern myself
with already.
It was as if someone knew just what button to push at just the
right time. Because I was already dealing with some very frustrating things
this week. But somehow it really ministered to me. Instead of figuring out who did
it and why and making them “pay for it”, or making some big deal out of it that
would ruin my attitude, my day, or my weekend, I asked the Lord about it. And I
talked to my fellow elders about it. They said it was the other person’s
problem, not ours. And fortunately, we live in a land of plentiful mailboxes.
And then the godly thought hit me. Someone was spreading
their own petty aggravation to me and it gave me petty aggravation. But would I
take that petty aggravation and try to put it on someone else? Would I spread
it out, or stop it from spreading? Would I make the world a more hurting and hurtful
place? Or would I let the healing start with me?
The lesson is this: Next time someone says something hurtful,
personal, spiteful, grumbling, gossip, complaining, bitter, etc., on social media,
or when someone anonymously spreads their anger, aggravation, bitterness, stress,
etc., out to your world, instead of spreading it out even more, why not let the
healing start with you?
