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[kenny]

Wow... All you seniors are posting all these awesome life stories, and what do I have? Online game experience, which sounds like a really silly way to learn to "love your enemies" compared to the ones you guys got from real life.

I play a game called GunZ. Down here, players are extremely arrogant and after they lose, they hurl a lot of abuse and it gets quite upsetting sometimes. There is a very real hate between rival players, even through the internet. I've been there. I felt the anger before, and I even loved it. I used it to power my gameplay, and I hammered down all my enemies and taunted them heavily after I did, "You @$&#*(&, don't talk if you can't play" or "You mother %^$&@*$& nooblet go home ##&%@$(&# $&#*&!)@($## etc. etc.". They threw the same stuff right back at me, and when one of us had to leave, it is with very bitter feelings that stays with you long throughout the week if you didn't manage to "settle the score".

It's pride.

You can't love your enemies with pride in the way, you can't even begin to forgive them if you can't lower your pride and stay humble. Even now, in my Halo 3 stints, I can feel all the anger when I lose to a player who was more of a green hat than I was, and it's still a real struggle not to turn the mic on and start yelling at them. And in school, I thought I was so great in Math and I got a little arrogant during the paper. I made lots of careless mistakes and heck near failed, and there was this guy who used to do terribly at Math, and he got tops. When I heard the news I was like... "Oh gosh no way, that stupid fella?" and I could feel the jealousy. I managed to recover from that thankfully through some prayer later on, but I can still remember the hate. It was all my pride. My pride made me make enemies out of innocent people, people who did better than me, who went against me, who made me lose my pride. (I just noticed that it's all, me, me, me! Joining dots with "the Beast", anyone?)

I guess that's one of the reasons why we absolutely need to have a humble heart.

Astrapho
Are you posting from school, just asking because your post time is school time, and if you take 55 and subtract 40 = 15.

[hillsbororiver]

AHH!! D: D:

Lemme put it this way...You're 40 years more ancient than me. 

Hi Astropho,

I cannot even imagine myself absorbing these teachings when I was 15, at that age (in 1969) I was totally immersed in the counter culture of that time period, my religion was rock and roll and all the various hedonistic activities that can be associated with those days.

I can only thank God that I am here to talk about it and not in the grave or in prison, there are more than a few of my old mates who can't say the same thing.

In regard to loving our enemies, having patience with those who tend to annoy or frustrate us, having empathy or even sympathy for those whose actions offend us and being gentle with the brutish, are these the things that constitute the armor (KJV armour) of the Lord? Is it the manifestation of the fruit of His Spirit? Can we really grow in wisdom if we still fall short of these things?
 
 Galatians 5
 
 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

 23Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

 24And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

 25If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

 26Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

If we are not attentive to this and we still justify our own intemperance toward others does our armor have holes in it? I have found in my own experience when I fail in this and am not diligently in prayer to God to overcome this carnal weakness that I am very prone to other temptations.
 
 Ephesians 6

 10Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

 11Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

 12For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

 13Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

 14Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

 15And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

 16Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

 17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

Peace,

Joe

[Astrapho]

Hey Joe,

Wow, the things you typed up there seem to be speaking directly to me... Today was a horrible day. Today and yesterday actually. I skipped school and yelled at my mom, basically. Skipped school with a good reason, I fell sick and so I skipped school, except by mid morning I was fit for school so I should have gone... But I just skipped anyway out of laziness and I feel pretty bad about it. I yelled at my mom because she just randomly barged in on me when I was playing computer games (lol) and started screaming her head off about how horrible my exam results were. As usual, I was so frustrated I just couldn't hold all the harsh words in.
 
Then I read your post, so yeah really hit the nail on the head.  Must... Buck... Up... (On prayer too...)!

Are you posting from school, just asking because your post time is school time, and if you take 55 and subtract 40 = 15.

Ahh, different timezones then. It was really late at night when I typed that.

(You got it.   )