Monday, June 11, 2007

Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me; I will pay the man back for what he has done” Proverbs 24:29


Let me tell you about a man whom we’ll call Frank. Frank had been an outgoing mid-level manager, full of zest and optimism. Frank was up for a promotion which everyone agreed, he deserved. Much to his consternation senior management selected a less qualified individual. Of course, he was disappointed but took it in stride—until he learned that the individual who had been promoted had managed, with the help of some unethical managers taken credit for much of the work that Frank had done.


In addition, these unethical managers had implied in their reference letters that Frank had been the one who had stolen the credit from their candidate. Being fully human, Frank became angry and began plotting his revenge. Regardless of what he was doing his plans were never far from the surface of his mind. He became resentful and surly, he couldn’t concentrate on his work and his health began to decline.


His wife became concerned and asked their minister to call on Frank. During their conversation, Frank confessed that he was focused on revenge. Over several weeks, the minister was able to help Frank let go of his resentment and desire for revenge. Within a few months he was his old self again, and by the end of the year the truth came out and he received a promotion.


Frank’s story illustrates how important it is for us to follow the teachings of this passage, "Do not say, 'I will do to him as he has done to me; I will pay the man back for what he has done'”