Pray for those who hurt us!

Have you ever been around people (even best friends and close relatives) that choose to speak words of hate, anger and grief into your life? I like the phrase my momma taught me as a child—“If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all!” Well, our Lord, feels the same way.
The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness. [Proverbs 15:2]There is one who speaks rashly like the thrusts of a sword, But the tongue of the wise brings healing. [Proverbs 12:18]Taken from Joel Osteen : “Are your words bringing healing to the people around you? The Bible clearly tells us that life and death are in the power of our tongue. We can use our tongue to build people up and encourage them with words of healing, or we can just as easily sow negative seeds with our words. The Bible says that the tongue of the wise brings healing. Choose to be wise today by choosing healing words. Choose to look for the best in others and build them up. Choose healing words over gossip; choose words of freedom and peace over anger and judgment. Let your words uplift and encourage the people in your life. Speak strength and hope to others. As you use your words to bring healing, God will pour out more of His wisdom in your life. You’ll reap the harvest you’ve sown with your words. God will pour out His blessing and increase in your life so you can live the abundant life He has in store for you.”He must be devoted to the trustworthy message that agrees with what we teach, so that he may be able to encourage others with healthy doctrine and refute those who oppose it. [Titus 1:9]Sadly, we can’t change others or the way they behave.What we can do is stay strong in the Word of God. Rely on His grace and strength to see us through the times that we feel hurt or even angry. We can use His Word and His promises as a shield to deflect the ‘… thrusts of the sword …’.Finally, instead of repaying the anger and hatred with the same, we can respond with love and kindness – praying for those that hurt us!