Thinking Out Loud, Volume CCCLXXIII

It was a long time ago when I reached the stage of life where I could be described as a mature adult, big enough to take care of myself. However, as of right now, I'm still there. As I mentioned just a few weeks ago, it's possible, if I live long enough, that I will one day arrive at the point where I'll need someone else to care for me, but until that time comes, I'd like to make a deal with you: If I'm having issues with another individual and it doesn't involve you, please stay out of it and let me handle it as I see fit. I will, at the same time, offer you the same courtesy. If an individual is being disrespectful to me, and from your point of view, I'm not being aggressive enough in defending myself, please consider the possibility that I may know something about that situation of which you are unaware. I promise you, if I need help, I'll let you know. It could be that I have a strategic plan in dealing with the problem, and any involvement from someone else may completely disrupt what I have working. Sometimes individuals may be perfectly capable of doing whatever they so desire when it comes to defending themselves, yet they choose to remain humble and let it ride. That's called meekness. Now, just to be clear, I want to make it known that I'm really not having any problems with any of my friends in this area, so these words are not being directed at anyone else...I'm aiming them at myself. You see, I have a close friend who is constantly being mocked and disrespected, yet he just takes it and let's it go without saying a word, and I have to fight the urge to jump in and come to his rescue. I have to keep reminding myself that he's stronger and smarter than I am, and if I jump in and start trying to throw my weight around in his defense, I might just be ruining the whole situation for him and his strategy in dealing with it. I've decided to go ahead and tell you who this friend is. It's God. He loves it when I introduce Him to my friends who don't know Him, but when it comes to setting someone straight or punishing someone who may be doing Him wrong, I think He'd rather I allow Him to handle it the way He sees fit. One thing I know, God wants to be friends with whomever is doing Him wrong, and if I jump in and make that less likely to happen, I've just done Him a great disservice. He has made it clear that my job is to bring people to Him, not turn anyone against Him. I've learned that if I stick to my assigned tasks and let Him handle the dirty work as He sees fit, the results will be much better, and everyone is happier. Preston