From Bitter to Better
Good Morning Friends,
In a Seder dinner bitter herbs are designed to remind of the bitterness of the slavery in Egypt. We too long the route to something better will remember the roots of bitterness we have faced. Some of the events of human history seem to impact us so greatly that we will forever remember the circumstances surrounding them. The question in facing these experiences is how to win the battle of the spirit that surrounds the memory. In life we are going to have hardships and successes. Friends, bitterness can become a cancer. Never succumb to its temptation to take up permanent residence. You see, bitterness imprisons life where love releases it. There can be a certain honesty about bitterness but it does no good to dwell there. If we do we might just discover that the cultivation of retrospective bitterness is not only the enemy of current joy, it is a kind of death. Friends we cannot change what has past. We must grow From Bitter to Better.
Scripture:
22Then Moses ordered Israel to set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. 23When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter. That is why it was called Marah. 24And the people complained against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” 25He cried out to the Lord; and the Lord showed him a piece of wood; he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. There the Lord made for them a statute and an ordinance and there he put them to the test. 26He said, “If you will listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in his sight, and give heed to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will not bring upon you any of the diseases that I brought upon the Egyptians; for I am the Lord who heals you.” 27Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees; and they camped there by the water.
Exodus 15: 22-27 (NRSV)
31Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice,
Ephesians 4:31 (NRSV)
14Pursue peace with everyone, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. 15See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springs up and causes trouble, and through it many become defiled.
Hebrews 12:14-15 (NRSV)
Message: Bitterness has a tenacious way of taking root deep within the soul and resisting all efforts to weed it out. Bitterness occurs for many reasons. It might come from deep hurts we received as a child or hurts we just cannot seem to forget. Time, rather than diminishing the hurt, only seems to sharpen the pain. Bitterness can result from the hurtful words of a friend or coworker. Often the person prompting the pain is unaware of the extent of the bitterness being generated. Bitterness can devastate the spirit, destroy our body, discourage motivations, divide a fellowship, deprive us of blessings and defile relationships. Perceived sin causes bitterness. It has little to do with how big the sin is and a lot to do with how close the sin and the sinner is to us. We insanely think that we have a right to be bitter….a right to be unforgiving. If we keep it inside, eventually it can kill us. If we share it everybody gets sick. But if we recognize bitterness as our problem not someone else’s, if we recognize it as our sin before God, we can confess it and dig it up so God can forgive us.
Pray we not blame God when bad things happen. Pray we not blame people for what they have done. Pray we do not rehearse in our minds over and over and over again feelings that cannot be remembered as good times. Pray we realize that Jesus tasted bitterness on the cross and had victory over it. Pray we realize that there is a promised land after the desert experience. Pray we not reject God’s grace. Pray we find rest and peace and healing and forgiveness. Pray we realize that Jesus is waiting to give us victory over our sin of bitterness this morning. Pray we journey on to something better.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 