This Word Wednesday is a recent lesson that I’ve learned. It’s fresh in my mind and one that I’ve come to realize is a pretty valuable life lesson. We may tend to forget it, but it doesn’t hurt to have a little reminder.

It’s easy to let our emotions influence our reactions. I’m guilty of this fact. Just ask my friends and family. Yet, this doesn’t have to be a permanent “problem”. Sometimes we just need little reminders.

Recently, I had an encounter that did not go in my favor. Without a 2nd thought I was treated rudely. I managed to hold myself together, but after the incident, I talked it through with my best friend who had witnessed the incident. While she did agree it wasn’t the nicest encounter, she did remind me of one thing: be nice. It’s the right thing to do.

I was immediately reminded of this verse. While it is hard to love someone who did wrong, Jesus is right. It’s hard to live a life with hatred in it. Hate holds us back from doing what God wants us to do: have grace.

This goes back to my main objective. Being a person of grace doesn’t come automatically, and this verse reminds us how to achieve it. It’s hard to love someone who’s wronged us, so sometimes we just need to be the bigger person and do the right thing. I talked about love in one of my earlier post and how it isn’t always what we think it is. It’s not the grand romantic gestures you see in movies. So, loving everyone isn’t impossible.

God gives us the greatest example of this verse. Himself and Jesus! Despite people committing sins, they still love us. It may cause disappointment, but they still love us with their full heart.

So, as humans it’t natural to let our emotions overpower our actions. Believe me, I’ve been guilty of this on many accounts. Yet, this verse is always going to be here to remind me of the right thing. It may be hard, but not impossible. With an amazing example and reminders, we can all live a life of love. We just have to open our heart a little bit.