Colossians 3:12-17
(Use the link below to read the verses.)
Do you notice anything unusual about this picture? Does anything look out of place? What about the grill? Aren’t grills normally on your deck in the back of the house? But this one is on the patio in the front of a condo…. my condo.
For the past nine years our grill has been on the deck in the back until this year when we received a notice from our condo board that there is a state law that you can’t do that. Who would’ve thunk it? In order to comply, we moved our grill to the front patio. Problem solved right? Wrong!
About a month ago we received a “First Notice for Rule Enforcement” from the condo board stating that our grill was on “common property” and therefore, according to the By-Laws, must be removed immediately. Even though this is a confession, I won’t share my initial, uncensored reaction when I read this notice at the end of a long day at work.
Eventually, after calming down and thinking rationally, I composed what I thought was a well-reasoned and thought out letter signed by my wife and myself. It explained why we disagreed with the board’s position and backed it up with the condo By-Laws.
That should have been good enough for me to put this matter in the past; but it wasn’t. My anger and resentment kept poking its ugly head up from beneath the surface. Then this week, in preparation of writing this devotional, I read my verses.
12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. NLT
Darn! There are so many times it would be much easier to not be a Christian; to not have to follow Christ. I would much rather be angry and unforgiving. I prefer to justify my actions because of some perceived wrong. It’s so much easier to be angry because people don’t live up to my expectations. Then came the dagger.
17 And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father. NLT
It’s confession time. Do you feel convicted after reading these verses? I do. As a result, although I’m not sure what we will do about our grill, I most certainly need to change my attitude and to represent the Lord well.
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