One thing that can easily put a kink in our spiritual hose is getting (and staying) offended at people who hurt us. No matter how spiritually mature we become, people will still “tick us off” at times. When that happens, to get the water flowing from our innermost being again, we must do exactly what Jesus told us to do:

…love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. (Matthew 5:44–45)

Sometimes when we first start praying for such people, our prayers don’t seem very genuine. They’re tainted with residue from the past. They’re like the rusty brown water that comes out when you first turn on the faucet at a lake house. They’re full of the junk that’s not fit to drink.

What do we do about it?

The same thing we do at the lake house. We don’t pack up our bags and go back to the city. We don’t cancel our vacation just because there’s rusty water in the sink. No, we keep the water running until it washes the junk out of the pipes.

That’s what we do in prayer! We let the people who hurt us drive us to Jesus. We let them be a stimulus that keeps us praying and fellowshipping with God until the flow of His Spirit cleanses us, heals us, and rids us of the residue of the past.

We keep our prayer river flowing until the waters of our spirits are running clean and pure again.

Scripture Reading: Luke 6:27–38