DON’T TRY TO JUSTIFY OR EXCUSE UNLOVING BEHAVIOR.
Bible Reading of the Day: Read Romans 12:9, 17-21.
Verse of the Day: “Don’t let evil get the best of you, but conquer evil by doing good” (Romans 12:21).
Monica said good night to her mother and closed her bedroom door. She reached into the drawer of her nightstand, pulled out her diary, and began to write:
Saw Jimmy in line at the movies today. He was talking to Susan Brock. He was with friends, and she was with her parents.
I can’t wait to see Gina tomorrow. I’ll smile like we’re still friends and tell her that I saw Jimmy and Susan in line together at the movies. I’ll tell her how pretty Susan looked and how close they were standing. That ought to give Gina something to think about. With any luck, she’ll throw one of her temper tantrums around Jimmy. He’ll finally see what she’s really like. Maybe they’ll even get mad and break up.
The best part of it is, I’ll only be telling the truth. I won’t be doing a thing wrong. Just teaching my former best friend a lesson.
She finished writing, set her diary on her bedside table, turned out the light, and rolled over to go to sleep. But sleep would not come. Something was bothering her. After tossing and turning for a long time, she turned on the light beside her bed and stared at the poster-covered walls for a few moments.
I know God said we should love each other, she thought, feeling as if she were talking not only to herself, but to Someone else as well, but this is different.
She frowned. I mean, Jimmy was my boyfriend first. Gina had no right to do what she did. She stood for a moment, then plopped back down onto the edge of her bed. It was wrong for her to do what she did, not for me to do what I’m going to do.
She turned out the light and lay back on her bed, waiting for sleep to come.
TO DISCUSS: Do you agree that Monica wouldn’t be doing anything wrong to carry out her plan? Why or why not? What command is Monica forgetting? What do you think Monica should do? What would you do?
TO
PRAY: “Lord, we need your strength to avoid letting evil get the best of us. May we conquer evil by doing good.”