Turn It Around - Overcome Evil with Good

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. - Romans 12:21

This command can seem almost impossible when someone hurts you deeply! However, the contrary of repaying evil with evil, which seems natural and right, only hurts you even more because this action creates a vicious cycle of evil doings between you and your enemy (spouse, friend, co-worker, sibling, neighbor). 

Think about it...the best way to get rid of our enemies is to turn them into our friends!

You may be asking "How do I do this"?. Well, earlier in this chapter in verses 9, 10 Paul writes "Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves."

Sincere love is intentional love and intentional love is love in action! In order to overcome evil with good, we have to be intentional and we must act in love and act for love in all that we do and in all that we say. Love in action is not of the emotional sort but of respect and honor just as you respect and honor yourself. Again, it may seem almost impossible to live in this manner, but just think how it could be if we would just try. An act of forgiveness and mutual respect sprinkled over every dispute can lead to mutual reconciliation; thereby, creating a harmony between you and your enemy.

On this NEXT LEVEL we are all being called to overcome our own weaknesses so that we can overcome our in-differences with one another and once we can overcome our in-differences with one another, we can then rid ourselves of our enemies and turn them into our friends.

In the picture above we can clearly see that we can overcome evil with good. When we do this we see the good that we do surrounds the evil and the evil becomes a small matter in our lives, while the good increases in our lives. In this same picture, you have to look hard to see evil when it is surrounded by Good!

May we not be overcome by evil, but may we conquer and overcome all sorts of evil with the good that is of God and is at work in us! In doing so, we will indeed Finish Strong!!