Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness-without it no one will see the Lord. Make sure that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no root of bitterness springs up, causing trouble and by it defiling many.   Hebrews 12:15 HCSB

Many years ago, I bought a small apartment complex. This was going to be my retirement plan. Of course, I didn’t have the cash to pay for it, so I financed it. Every month I collected rent from the residents and turned the majority of that rent over to the bank to pay my note. I could not afford to let someone go without paying rent. When someone didn’t pay rent, I had to evict them.

As Christians we owe a debt to our Lord and Savior. It’s a debt that we can never repay, but we can make payments. Part of making those payments is living in obedience to His word. Our Scripture passage warns us not to let bitterness take root in our lives. When we do this, it is often said that we allow these people to live rent free in our heads.

I don’t know about you, but I can no more allow someone to live rent free in my head than I could allow someone to live rent free in my apartments. If someone had come and wanted to pay me ten times what I was charging for an apartment that would have been great right? Well Jesus pays me way more than I could ever imagine or even deserve. So, I must give my thoughts to Him. I must focus on Him and let Him deal with anyone that has done me wrong.

We are told very clearly in Romans 12:19 that we are to leave room for God’s wrath. We are not to seek vengeance because vengeance is God’s job. We are to pursue peace. We are to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44). Bitterness is usually married to pride. The two get tangled up together and it’s a recipe for disaster. We know that pride comes before destruction and an arrogant spirit before a fall (Proverbs 16:18).

My job is to focus on what is simple, good and pure (Philippians 4:8). When I do this, it makes me much happier. It gives me peace and joy.

Letting Jesus live in my head is like getting way more than what that space is worth if you know what I mean. Why would I undersell that space to someone who has done me wrong? Think about it.

Have a great day!