Personal Log 3.30.26

Something happened on Sunday that reminded me of a similar situation several years ago at my former job. I had a horrible manager, he used to write me up once a week, every single week; this went on for six years. He really didn’t like me & for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why. Even my co-workers were like, “what’s going on?”. While praying about it, I felt like the Lord did not want me to leave this job, just hang in there no matter how bad it got (& it got bad!).

Well, a week before his surprise firing, he pulled me into his office & relayed that something I said (offhanded) when we first met six years prior, he took the wrong way & he held that against me all this time. Six years of abuse, six years of hell because of something festering inside of him that he couldn’t let go.

Yesterday, this episode repeated itself. Right before service was to start, another member of our worship team laid into me about something I said (or was said about us not getting along) last year & he let that fester all this time. At the time, it was true that we were not getting along but since then, it’s been pretty good as we came to an understanding & it’s been fairly smooth but the fact that he, much like my boss years earlier, let it fester inside of him until it erupted, it was not good nor healthy for him, physically or spiritually.

From Biblehub: The concept of "fester" is often associated with the idea of decay, corruption, or the worsening of a condition, whether physical, moral, or spiritual. The imagery of festering is used in Scripture to illustrate the consequences of sin, the effects of unaddressed grievances, and the deterioration of relationships or spiritual health.

Festering is also used to describe the effects of unresolved conflict and bitterness within relationships. In Ephesians 4:26-27, Paul advises, "Be angry, yet do not sin. Do not let the sun set upon your anger, and do not give the devil a foothold." Allowing anger to fester can lead to bitterness and division, providing an opportunity for the enemy to exploit and damage the unity of believers.

Hebrews 12:15 further warns against the root of bitterness that can fester and cause trouble: "See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God, and that no root of bitterness springs up to cause trouble and defile many." This passage emphasizes the importance of addressing grievances and seeking reconciliation to prevent the festering of discord and spiritual harm.

So, I thought everything was okay between myself & this other member of the worship team but apparently it wasn’t. I had no idea. I did talk to him afterwards & it seemed as if things were resolved; we’ll see later on down the road…

I will say this though: unresolved conflict affects others, especially in ministry; people can pick up on it.

Matthew 5:23-24 “If you are offering a gift at the altar and remember that someone has something against you, you should leave your gift and first be reconciled to that person before continuing with your offering.”

This is an interesting verse as it puts the onus not on the person that has something against you, but on you to be proactive & seek reconciliation. Yes you. Of course it helps if you know that they are offended, you can’t do anything about it if you’re unaware of it.

My takeaway is this: Since life is short, don’t make it shorter or more miserable by harboring resentment against anyone. It’s not good for you physically & especially not good for you spiritually. If the Lord has forgiven you quickly & completely of a multitude of sins, then the least you can do is forgive others quickly & completely, whether they are aware of the offense or not.