Love Like You've Never Been Hurt by Jentezen Franklin

Author:Jentezen Franklin
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Christian Living;REL012040
ISBN: 9781493413515
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2017-12-27T05:00:00+00:00

Sometimes You Have to Zip It

There are times we are unable to physically withdraw from a situation, but we can drop our swords another way. We can shut our mouths.

We used to sing an old gospel song in church about how the Lord would fight our battles if we let Him, and we would always have the victory.

You do not need to argue with your enemy. You need to hold your peace and let the Lord fight your battle.

You do not need to tell off people who gossiped about you. You need to let God show them the error of their ways. You do not need to bark at your children because they did something stupid. You need to be still and let God work in their lives. You do not need to hurl a snappy comeback at your spouse after he or she said something hurtful. You can pray and say to yourself, “Be quiet, there’s a victory in progress in my situation!”

You probably know the story about how ancient Israel conquered the city of Jericho. It was not a result of their well-armed soldiers or their well-calculated battle strategies. God promised victory through an unusual means.

He commanded the people to march around the city once for six days, followed by seven times on the seventh day, during which the priests would blow their horns and the people would shout.

What is interesting—and many miss this crucial detail—is that before this happened, Joshua commanded the people, “Do not shout; do not even talk. . . . Not a single word from any of you until I tell you to shout. Then shout!” (Joshua 6:10).

In other words, shut up until I tell you otherwise.

How many times have you opened your mouth and caused destruction with the words that flew out? Maybe you cussed someone out, and in the same moment that first word slipped out, you knew it was wrong. Maybe you shouted hurtful remarks that long strained what was once a great friendship. Maybe you berated a loved one without any measure of self-control, and it scarred her sense of self.

Next time you are tempted to go to that place, be quiet. A miracle is in progress.

I like what Benjamin Franklin said: “Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.”1

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