Doing the Opposite
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you. – Matthew 5:38-42
I don’t know why I would sense that God wants me to get up at 3:00 a.m. and pray. Or why I would feel compelled to write something for this page during this time. What I do know is that I have a longing in my heart to know and experience God.
That sounds really spiritual, I know. So I don’t sound like I’m trying to appear like a “super-Christian,” let me clarify.
The reason I know I have this longing for God is that I’ve learned the default mode of my sinful heart. My instinct is to hunger for the approval of other people – to look to them for a sense of my value. These are mere echoes of a greater heart longing for God. Not the things of God, but God Himself.
It is easy for us to couch our language in spiritual terms. However, so often when we ask for God to bless our plans, hopes and desires, it’s like the Prodigal Son asking for his inheritance early so he can have his Father’s stuff but not be saddled with the intimate relationship.
So I’m working against my instinct tonight…I mean, this morning. I call it “George Costanza Spirituality.”
My absolute favorite episode of the sitcom Seinfeld is the final episode of Season 5, entitled “The Opposite.” George decided that his every instinct was wrong and that now he was going to do the exact opposite of what he had always done. In acting counter intuitively, George lands a great job with the Yankees, a new apartment with freedom from his parents, and a date with a beautiful woman.
With nearly three decades as a Christian under my belt, I’ve discovered that my sinful, broken nature functions in much the same way. If I want to please God, know God and experience God, I often have to do the exact opposite of what I am naturally inclined to do. I don’t do it very well or consistently enough to be proud of myself, but it is nonetheless true for me…and I think for you, too, or Jesus wouldn’t have said this:
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. – Matthew 5:43-48
When I’m angry with someone who has hurt me in the past and I don’t want to forgive and forget, by faith I need to pray for their blessing instead of cursing them. When I’m envious of another’s life – their possessions or their privileges – I thank God for His kindness to them instead of complaining that I’m not as blessed as they are. When I feel like staying in bed when I think I might be sensing the Lord telling me to get up and pray, I ignore my desire to stay in bed and pursue time with him.
Not because I’m spiritual, but precisely because I’m the opposite. And because I want to know God.
It’s awfully quiet at 3:00 a.m. Quiet is unusual for me.