Be gentle and ready to forgive; never hold grudges. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

~ Colossians 3:13

I am working on “Colossians 3:13” but it can be very difficult  for I reside with an individual who is continuously . . . Nasty Negative   ! They have always been this way! I have had a lifetime  -this is a sibling & their child-  of butting heads with this individual for their attitude & out look infuriates me  . . . This individual is always right  &  everyone is always wrong, that is just the way it is   in their eyes    ( be it parents, siblings, co-workers, service providers, teachers, law enforcement, doctors, lawyers, etc etc etc ) . . . So I would stand  my ground, but in doing so I quickly discovered that was exactly what the individual wanted  for when I stood my ground & head butted with them I was lowering  myself to what they wanted . . .   anger  . For a long time it was easy for me to cave in to their ways even thou I knew what they were aiming for  . . . Now I try to turn the other cheek, which is exceptionally challenging for as I stated this individual is nasty negative & thrives on agitating others & situations, they never let you walk away      . . .

The more reading/studying/learning I am doing with God’s word  I have come to realize it is not really this individual but instead the devil  . . . Now don’t get me wrong, I am not calling this individual a devil  . . . What I am trying to explain here is that the devil  , everything hateful & negative, is in them . . . The devil  found a great place to camp  out, he knows all he has to do is add a small splinter of wood & the fire  in them will reach tremendous heights . . . & being I have issues I am working on with God  about this person, the devil  knows that when he adds that splinter to them & the fire  begins to roar, ambers will filter out over to me  . . . So God’s word  is my extinguisher  . I am learning this, I am learning God’s word  to help me through these trying times . . . I really have to work on applying what I am learning!!!!  

Now when I see this individual I send a prayer  up to the Lord “Please dear God, help me to resist Satan in the name of Jesus Christ!” for I know the devil  is working through this individual & is seeking to tempt me to anger  . . . I am now realizing I need to send up a prayer  for this individual as well . . . Perhaps I should be requesting that this individual resist Satan  as well? Yes, I think that is a strong possibilty indeed for even thou my pray  to God helps me resist Satan  in this individuals presence I still am quite angry, confused & exhausted after every encounter with them   . . . As stated I reside with this individual, so the encounters are enormous in quantity & experience  . . . . I can not let the devil have victory!!!! No, no, no, I take that back  . . . what I am saying is . . . By the Grace of God  , I WILL NOT let the devil gain victory!!!!! Amen

 Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about.

~ Philippians 4:8

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