Trouble-Maker

When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.

Ezekiel 3:18

 

Your brother or sister in Christ might be a troublemaker for all the wrong reasons! Angry because all her relationships ended in failure, bitter because her childhood wasn’t like the rest, miserable due to health issues, and upset with the church. So the unforgiving and jealous single woman creates a women’s organization that preaches an “off with his head” kind of gospel. Although this is a mere example, the disturbing part to consider is there may be someone who is leading in your home, at church, or in the workplace who secretly feels like the angry single woman.

In this next example, we have a bitter, married man who can’t seem to get along with fellow Christian men, so he makes a mockery of these men on a daily radio program. Meanwhile, he attempts to get men to come together and work out their differences in a social group he heads. However, he is often guilty of using the struggles of these men in his comedic story-telling.

In both of the previous mentioned examples, these troublemakers have in the closet issues that are masked in such a way that appear like they are helping others when the fact is they are recruiting future trouble-makers, people ready to argue or joke about important matters stirring up trouble in such a way so that they appear like they are in control, reputable and likeable because they so-called speak truth or “keep it real”. Most often men and women who partner with angry and bitter people turn out to have many ways that look like their leaders and they eventually struggle with similar demons.

There are those people who say they do not start trouble. They will not witness to anyone about God, share their personal beliefs, attend a church, help a brother or sister when they see they need assistance, or visit any family members or friends because they fear they might be mixed up in someone else’s drama. This sort of behavior we expect from the unsaved and the backslider, but when people act like this who claim to be Christ believers, you have to question whether or not these people sincerely trust in the Lord like they claim. But if one is indeed a true believer, he or she will permit God to have his way in his or her life and do whatever God says do. However, the truth is we have more Jonahs and Judas’ in this world than Abrahams and Noahs.

Do you think Jesus would approve of believers who keep silent about issues especially when the devil’s trouble-making minions are around? These “mind my own business” types believe that by living in their homes and not confronting relatives, friends, neighbors, co-workers and others on wrongs, they aren’t starting any trouble; therefore they must be living right. But the truth is some of these people are starting trouble when they act silently on wrongdoing. They are no better than the critic who finds fault with them just for sitting at home! “I won’t call the police on those people, because…well I don’t know if they might shoot up my house, the noise ain’t so bad. I don’t want to be bothered with her kids, because I have enough issues of my own. I don’t like those folks over there—you know what they say about their culture. That’s why I mind my own business!” the so-called Christ follower says. No making trouble and trouble won’t follow you unless that is what some believe until it shows up unexpectedly in one’s front yard.

A partner has repeatedly done something to offend, so a loved one reasons, “I’ll just be quiet, I don’t want to talk to him about it because I know how he is.” A child keeps making the same mistakes in school, a parent says, “I don’t want to hear her sassy mouth today, so I will just hope for the best.” Notice in these two examples, one is in trouble or making trouble and those who should be talking won’t. I have to ask again, “Where is the believer’s faith?” Prayer helps, but confrontation exposes the foolishness and moves one to make changes or else.

Some Christ followers may live their lives seemingly peaceful, but be guilty of making unrighteous comments via phone, email, or a social networking site about fellow brothers and sisters, the unsaved, lost and confused while claiming they aren’t trouble-makers. These people who mind everyone else’s business (but their own), may start a conversation with anyone they believe will support them on their opinions. They hope to gain support when talking about others’ weaknesses. By doing this, they deflect from their personal challenges. However, the God we serve has an interesting way of exposing the prideful whether with them or through the one’s they love. “My mother says she doesn’t make any trouble, but the truth is, she is always saying something negative to someone. My uncle claims that he loves the Lord, but just the other day he was yelling at all of us for the littlest of things, yet he says he doesn’t bother anyone.” Is anyone saying this about you or have you noticed someone like this in your circle?

Other troublemakers, who could also be described as pessimistic critics of the faith, typically lack good communication skills and often become emotional when one is trying to convey a point about the Lord. They refuse to admit that their criticism of others and discouraging words are causing more harm than good. The wayward Christian justifies arguing with a friend over a trivial matter. The unbelieving spouse finds fault with everyone but himself; meanwhile accuses others of trouble-making. When asked a question about one’s belief system, the critic will respond in a negative tone of voice. These same people, who claim not to start fights, wouldn’t be so quick-tongued, angry, or bitter if they were sincerely peacemakers.

The conflict starter who is comfortable with the following: verbally and/or physically fighting, being the center of a conflict, or participating in a tag team with other like-minded fighters, will not only start a fight, but keep it going. They read into everything even when there is nothing to be read! There are still people in this world with good intentions, but a trouble-making critic who isn’t about God’s business isn’t one of them!

The troublemaker looks for wrongs in situations even when a judgment of right or wrong is unnecessary. The wicked will influence one’s mindset to doubt what he or she believes to be true, and overall causes upset in situations that most would normally feel comfortable.

One who purposely makes trouble tends to lack self-control and is oftentimes at war with most people from the man at the deli counter to the police officer who pulls him over for a traffic violation.

The troublemaker might say something like, “What do you think she meant when she said…How did his statement make you feel, I felt like he was trying to make me look like a fool…Do you really think this person really meant nothing by what she said?” If you have watched any reality show, you know that there is always one who appears like he or she is a friend to everyone, but upon closer inspection you notice that the idle woman or man is nothing more than a foe to all who has one objective: to stand out from the rest so that he or she can boost his or her career.

When there are misunderstandings such as when a Christian does the following: prophecies, presents a sermon, instructs a class, shares a book, creates a video, writes text, sends email, records voicemail, or does some other thing people will scrutinize him or her like the Pharisees did Jesus. The critic will suggest that, “He is a false prophet…She doesn’t know what she is talking about…” The more influence the Christian has over the masses, the more criticism. The foe says negative things in an effort to discredit the person and put away truth. Trouble-making individuals pick fights and they prey on the emotionally weak. In Proverbs 15:4 (NIV,) we are advised, “The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life, but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.” How many times have we all experienced some degree of criticism from a trouble-making foe who was jealous, bitter, unforgiving, or mean-spirited all because we questioned, exposed, or shared truth?

Discerning individuals should be able to see the critic’s accusations as nothing more than an act of rebellion and unfortunately an attack on the one true God who stands behind his messengers. We should never throw the baby out with the bath water, when listening or reading the works that God inspired his chosen to use to uplift, encourage, teach, and admonish the church body when dealing with troublemakers. Otherwise, we are no better than the trouble-making fool, who is used by Satan, to get believers off track in their missions to perform the Father’s will.

In the Holy Bible, Samuel was faced with some opposition from naysayers who decided to act in petty ways toward him while he was being led by God. According to 1 Samuel 10:25-27, “Then Samuel told the people the manner of the kingdom, and wrote it in a book, and laid it up before the Lord. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house. And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and there went with him a band of men, whose hearts God had touched. But the children of Belial said, How shall this man save us? And they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace.” Notice he didn’t confront the people, ask what their concerns were, or set up a room for debate. Some of us, when faced with similar petty behavior, know that at times we don’t hold our peace. We want to get all parties together to discuss the issue. The Lord told me, there is a time and a place for everything and not every issue needs to be publically or privately addressed. When we ignore the voice of the Lord and choose to confront those who have offended us anyway, the end result usually is that we are looked at as troublemakers. The critic has a field day when God’s people act like fools! “The tongue of the wise commends knowledge, but the mouth of the fool gushes folly” (Proverbs 15:2).

Now some people you know may have a legitimate concern about you and your faith; therefore they will ask questions in an attempt to try to make sense of what you said or done that may or may not offended them. Others will specifically look for issues with you for personal reasons such as: unresolved past issues, jealousy, anger and distrust. These critics of your faith may: disagree vehemently with your belief system, have a racial/gender/denomination/social class bias, avoid resolving past issues, don’t manage jealous feelings, have anger management issues, a mental condition, or have far more complicated reasons too long to discuss here.

Sometimes we need only to observe the individual who is doing the questioning concerning our faith. Ask yourself, “Is this person really sincere or is he or she starting trouble?” There is the Jesus kind of troublemaker that spreads biblical doctrine in attempt to help God’s people get deliverance from what troubles them, but then there is the devilish kind of troublemaker that attempts to destroy whatever or whoever is in his or her path. Troublemakers that risk freedom, health and wealth to bring truth to you and I are like Jesus. They shake up systems to get them to conform. They desire change and want to see all benefit, not just themselves. Yet, there are those individuals we must recognize as nothing more than false messengers, prophets, teachers, truth-tellers, and more who want nothing more than to achieve personal gain off the backs of the true freedom fighters. These people must be immediately expelled from your group as soon as you see that they are working for a common foe.

Satan sends demonic spirits specifically designed to get on your nerves or frustrate you when you are trying to do what’s right in your personal and professional lives. Consider when a man or woman speaks before an audience and begins to share the kind of truth that upsets tradition and causes one to question whether he or she is in fact a child of God, there is one in the audience that might cause tension in the air with disrespectful comments because he or she isn’t ready for truth. This is why the heckler, the argumentative type, and the strange are quickly removed from any large gathering. Whether justified troublemaking or not, some are more concerned about bringing attention to themselves then to the issues. Attendees can easily oppose a speaker simply by passing out fliers before or after an event, holding up signs, talking to the media who are present at the gathering, sharing a letter or other documents about an issue, or catching the speaker off guard when he or she isn’t standing before an audience that may or may not go along with what he or she is saying.

Sometimes troublemaking individuals are by design, planted at events, meetings, and elsewhere with the goal to upset progress. These political, spiritual, creative types are paid by some of the most influential and richest men and women in the world to cause mayhem from committing crimes like stealing and murder to doing simpler things like sitting in an audience and making various hand signals that only the speaker knows. If one is unaware that he or she is being followed, pressured, or moved to stop doing what he or she is doing, the heat is turned up until there is no denying that someone or a group doesn’t want the truth, agenda, project, or anything else to take root.

After 40 days of fasting without food or water, do you think Jesus may have been a little irritated with Satan’s statements and tests? Picture this, Jesus peacefully walking in the heat and then in the cold, trying to have some quiet time with his Father and then along comes the evil one talking in his ear. The enemy loves to come with his tests when your flesh is weak. From feelings of loneliness to hunger, your foe will distract you with his or her trouble-making statements and requests, therefore beware!

The enemy who acts nice and sweet in the public eye is usually mean behind closed doors. How do you know? Simply watch the person when under pressure or watch the reaction of a partner or spouse around them. Some of us are so distracted by a nice voice, an attractive physique and a fat wallet that we ignore the red flags. Others are very perceptive of evil and may experience cold chills and other uncomfortable emotions around certain individuals. Feelings of nervousness and fear show up in body language when a spouse, child, or someone closest to the troublemaker is around them. These are good indicators a troublemakers inner circle has a hard time dealing with him or her.

In addition to your observations, try talking to the troublemaker before jumping to conclusions that he or she might be an enemy. Sometimes a troublemaker could simply be someone who is in fact a worker for God but just has a funny way of showing it. Ask yourself, “Is this person acting out God’s will or his or her own?” If we notice the person doing or saying something that causes us to doubt whether this person is a believer or not, then provide tips for a trouble-making critic only when asked; however, don’t volunteer information. You never know what a troublemaker might do with your story, comments, advice, and other information if you are unsure about who this person represents. Ask more questions than comments so that you can find out more about him or her particularly if this person will be working with you. Try to do and say the kind of things that bring out “the best” in this person. One’s true intentions will come to light! Does this person act impatient, irritable, roll eyes or even ignore you despite your trying to be nice? You just may have a trouble-making enemy on your hands.

Let’s say you have a friend who is often offended whenever you ask him or her questions. No matter how nice you converse with this person almost always something is taken out of context. After each conversation, this person goes back to a partner or friend to talk negatively about you just because you rocked the boat with your questions. Now you are considered a troublemaker for rocking the boat and if you should hear that this person doesn’t like you or the things you say, most likely you have a foe!

There are those individuals who we might share our testimonies, revelations, dreams, and other spiritually-related stories; yet we hear from third parties how a relative or friend thinks we are too spiritual, talks too much about one topic or another, and other “too this and too that” statements. We might even learn that a trusted relative or friend is known for frequently exaggerating and lying about not only believers, but others as well. It is obvious that an enemy is in one’s camp making torouble. But what do most Christians do when they are in a situation like this? They try to hold on to their relatives and friends anyway! People who have long turned into enemies, in the hopes that God will miraculously change their evil ways-- don’t count on it! Backsliders and the lost must go to God for help and be committed to be more Christ-like.

Foes can be found in the most respected and religious civic groups and nonprofit organizations. For instance, there are those cliques that refuse to let outsiders in and will not separate from a group in order to become better individuals. They will protest together, gossip, lie, and even murder for one another. They don’t care about what’s in the best interest of the group. Rather, they are more concerned about what they can get for free and for how long. Troublemakers who organize groups that look and act like them and have no moral compass to follow, never spiritually grow. They can’t be broken up unless someone inside the group betrays the others. As long as they remain tightly bonded, a messenger of God can warn the group until he or she is blue in the face to stop doing certain negative activities and saying evil things, but as long as they have their supportive network of trouble-making, they will not budge.

Troublemakers, who are caught alone with no group to back them up, are no match for a child of God gifted in discernment and wise beyond his or her years. They will cower when confronted, back-peddle, and try to make light of what was said or done. These conflict starters may even lie just so that they don’t have to keep talking about what they did or didn’t do in front of you. God reveals who these people are when we ask this of him. Usually troublemakers will expose themselves simply by all their negative talk about others. Keep away from people such as this, they can be conniving and will do almost anything to save face especially when it comes to obtaining favor and money from others who they believe can benefit them in some way.

People who claim they don’t like to fight and prefer peace over arguments should also be observed. Their fruits will reveal whether they are trustworthy or not. How would you use a process of elimination to avoid getting someone on your team that talks out of two sides of their neck, in other words, a wishy-washy person? You would pray, wouldn’t you? While waiting on the Lord. But you would also test the spirits in the meantime too. Can you rely on a troublemaker to handle matters of importance in a diplomatic way? Of course not. What most likely will happen if you should let an unstable minded person, who claims peace over fighting, on your team is a double agent. He or she will work for you and the foes.

Keep in mind, there are those who are warriors for Christ—those who aren’t afraid to fight for righteousness. These people are troublemakers for the right reasons. As mentioned earlier, Jesus was considered a troublemaker in his time. But those who claim to be Christ followers may not be so reliable when it comes down to fighting a spiritual war with an evil prinicipality. The cowards will most likely flip flop, find excuses as to why they can’t be present, or pretend as if no problem exists. You can’t include people like this on your team when it comes to casting out demons, praying for the sick, performing God-inspired tasks, etc. Their fear will bring on trouble. Like a dog, Satan detects fear and he will use it to divide Christians. Today the troublemaker in your camp may preach peace, but tomorrow he may unexpectedly start World War III. Next week he may say, “Let’s call a truce,” but then underhandedly start a war by the following week.

In Numbers 12:1-2 (NIV), Miriam and Aaron opposed Moses because he married a wife who was not Jewish. Keep in mind, they are supposed to be on the same team—believers about God’s business, right? So why would Moses’ decision have any impact on them? They feared or worried about something they didn’t understand. According to the Bible, “Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses because of his Cushite wife, for he had married a Cushite. Has the Lord spoken only through Moses, they asked. “Hasn’t he also spoken through us?” God heard this conversation and showed up “in a pillar of cloud.” (v.5) Notice God confronted them, he didn’t just let the conversation go. Then he said the following in verses 6-8, “Listen to my words: When a prophet of the Lord is among you, I reveal myself to him in visions, I speak to him in dreams. But this is not true of my servant Moses; he is faithful in all my house. With him I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” The Scripture says, “The anger of the Lord burned against them and he left them.” (v.9) Miriam and Aaron were offended by Moses’ actions, but what they failed to realize that their leader was God-appointed. Sometimes as believers we consider those who do things that aren’t typically what we would do in situations “wrong, troublemakers, dumb…” but you have to watch criticizing God’s ordained.

The enemy is sensitive, emotional, and easily offended when he is confronted. Miriam didn’t escape punishment for voicing her opinion about Moses’ deeds, she was struck with leprosy. There are consequences we all can potentially face for talking against those that are sincerely walking with the Lord and being obedient to his will. This is why it is best to be quiet when there is no evidence or proof that says that someone’s deeds will in fact threaten our missions. Moses and Aaron asked God to heal her, but he didn’t grant their requests in their time. Rather, Miriam was afflicted with the disease for seven days and removed from the camp (Numbers 12:10-15). Had this woman kept quiet and watched first while praying about Moses situation, in time she might have seen what God wanted her to see. We have all been guilty of doing something similar in our lives, jumping to conclusions about one’s intent, actions, etc. without getting all the details first. When we open our mouths about things we don’t understand and attempt to get others to jump on the bandwagon, we then become the troublemakers that we have accused others of being.

Troublemakers will proclaim peace when their words are really meant to start a war over the littlest of things. Our foe is still very much a child in a grown up’s body. The enemy refuses to do good unless his actions will benefit him in some way toward his goals of causing trouble particularly for Christ believers. Those who work for the devil aren’t sincerely interested in the things of God. Rather, they prefer to glorify self. Troublemakers’ fleshly needs oftentimes override their spiritual ones.

You may have a foe right now who doesn’t like the way you dress, your breath, how short or tall you are, maybe you are too fat or too thin, not the right skin tone, or have something else that is bothersome to him or her, so he or she will talk about you to others or “keep it real” by telling you in person how they feel about you. But the truth is, the troublemaker is being used by Satan to make you feel bad about yourself to keep you from having the confidence and strength you need to start or complete an assignment God has in store for you. There is a way to communicate that doesn’t make any of us hurt so badly emotionally that we never want to be in a fellow brother or sister’s presence again. That way is simply being mindful of what we say and how we say it while keeping in mind that God is watching and listening.

When your foe is determining whether you will be a good match for his or her team, family, or group, he or she will test you to see if “you are my kind of girl or guy...” You ever hear anyone brag about someone who is blunt or harsh with the use of his or her words? “I like her…she keeps it real! I like him…he will go there…” the troublemaker brags.

When some people have legitimate concerns and question actions that go against the word of God like, “Why should we do this? Why not try that? Is that even righteous? What’s with taking oaths and praying to strange gods?” They are hushed. The enemy doesn’t like your questioning his or her thoughts no matter how foolish they sound. Now you are considered the troublemaker!

Let’s say you are at a family function, on the job or at home then suddenly your cell phone rings, someone sends you an email, and before you know it, the exchange between yourself and the individual goes from a “nice to hear from you” to thoughts of wishing you had never answered your phone or read your email. Those in conflict are usually already at war with someone or a group, but their calling on you for help is just one way of recruiting you to side with them. Troublemakers seek to create a team of people who will support them whether right or wrong as mentioned earlier. From flippant remarks to eye rolls, the conflict lover lets everyone know he or she doesn’t like someone or something. When he or she is confronted about his or her negative reaction, this person will pretend like they “don’t want any trouble.” It is evident that the conflict lover wants something, because why would he or she say or do anything that would upset self, you or others who may be around listening to his or her conversation in the first place? Start trouble and you will get what is coming to you.

Think of someone you know who frequently criticizes you whether to your face or behind your back whenever you ask this person for assistance. Despite the critic’s reasons for so-called “helping you” the truth is this individual doesn’t know how to assist you in peace, so now the “charity case” is talked about negatively. Let me be more specific with my point. For instance, let’s think of someone you know right now who is often trying to help others out of their dilemmas. But there are those days, when this seemingly generous person may not have any idea what really to say to these “needy individuals” they may have agreed to help when for any number of reasons, he or she can’t. Rather than just say, “I’m sorry I couldn’t help you like I promised,” they start complaining about how everyone wants something from them. “I’m not talking about you,” the trouble-making critic says. “I’m talking about other people. People act like I can just pull money off of trees!” It isn’t the needy people’s fault that one has over extended his or her self or has personal obligations that leave this person feeling stressed. But to this overwhelmed troublemaker, you and everyone else are a thorn in his or her spine. Can you really call this person kind-hearted, generous and personable? If you don’t want any trouble from a trouble-making critic, don’t ask him or her to assist you with anything!

An atmosphere that is conflict free is considered boring to troublemakers. They don’t know how to let things go even when some issues have nothing to do with them! They piggyback off of other’s life frustrations in the hope to look better despite their own personal drama with those closest to them.

Usually, individuals who have been raised around arguing, fussing and fighting, re-create drama by making a mountain out of a mole hill, so to speak, and talking about other people’s dramas by making statements like, “If that were me...I wouldn’t take that…who does she think she is…?” They add a few cuss words for effect and the next thing you know everyone who listens to them is disturbed in their spirits. People who are already emotional, nervous, have health conditions, or overwhelmed with responsibilities don’t make any, if very little time, for troublemakers. Those who are close to the Lord know that having regular conversations with such critics will not uplift them spiritually, but tear them down!

Troublemakers desire to war with believers. They thrive on conflict.

How many times have you been in conflict with people and don’t remember how you got there? All disputes start off with a little comment here, an insulting remark made there, and before long you or they are yelling, crying, or running away. It’s sad when you know your intentions were good initially, but somehow the devil got involved and made them look ugly. Yet, even in discourse, God’s messages will still come shining through; otherwise there wouldn’t be any conviction for the individual, now would there? Don’t worry over “blowing it this time.” Just repent to God, apologize if you acted out of character, and be more selective of the conversation you might have with this person next time. Unbelievers and backsliders usually take on a defensive stance (particularly with believers) when something within them is being stirred toward changing a bad habit or belief system.

You may recall a time when you shared something about the Bible with someone and before long they were insulting you with statements like, “Here we go again! I remember when you were out in the world, now you call yourself a Christian!” he says. “You believe all that stuff--it’s all fairytales! Man created the Bible so that he could control his sheep…” Now while you are hearing these offensive statements being said about your faith, your insides are churning, your heart is probably rapidly beating and if you are a new believer, you might be ready for a good verbal fight! In your mind, you are on fire for the Lord and you are determined to make the unbeliever hear the truth. Well unfortunately, before you give yourself a headache in the future, your speeches may not go over too well with a self-appointed troublemaker. By the end of your conversation with him or her, you may be walking away while crying out to God, “Help me!” Don’t be so hard on yourself, you can’t win them all! Be like Jesus, don’t stay anywhere too long with troublemakers. Say what needs to be said and on to the next house, next city, next state, or next country.

Foes can get on fire for the devil (notice I didn’t say Holy Ghost fire) especially when you provoke them with too much truth they aren’t quite ready to handle. They may attack if God didn’t give you the green-light to express a concern at that particular moment. The difficult person will also look for you to act irate, irritable, and irresponsible (notice each word begins with the letter “i” that’s the problem!) Whenever “I” comes to the forefront of your mind during a debate, you just might be digging a hole for yourself with a troublemaker. Too much “you” and that can be a problem too, best to avoid arguing with unreasonable individuals.

In 1 Samuel 1:4, Hannah was a woman who had a closed womb. During Old Testament times, when a woman could not conceive she was considered a failure. Hannah was often ridiculed by her rival because of this. However, her husband gave her double portions of meat because he loved her. The NIV Bible says, “…her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her. This went on year after year” (I Samuel 1:6-7). Hannah would cry, eat and was depressed about her situation. The Bible says, “In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the Lord” (I Samuel 1:10). In time, God answered Hannah’s prayer and she conceived Samuel (I Samuel 1:19-20). When we are under great distress due to an enemy, we must cry out to the Lord for deliverance. “My heart rejoices in the Lord; in the Lord my horn is lifted high. My mouth boasts over my enemies, for I delight in your deliverance….” (I Samuel 2:1).

If you should lose your cool, critics may follow up with a few angry outbursts saying things like, “So you call yourself a Christian…I never met Christians who act like you!” In their eyes, they don’t believe Christians should get angry. They see believers as gentle, kind, sweet, and naive. We know that those flattering words truly don’t describe the full character of a soldier for Christ. There will be times when anger will come upon you, but it must be directed appropriately. In the Bible, we read about Jesus being angry with the money-changers in the temple, but he didn’t sin (John 2:15). Jesus took his anger out on the vendors’ tables, rather than on the vendors themselves. If some of us had been in a similar situation, some people would have walked out of there with two black eyes, broken ribs and more. God would be very displeased with us and even worse we would be hauled off to jail.

When we are upset with the critics for their deliberate tactics to knock us off our walk with God, we have to use our anger toward positive action instead of negative reaction. For instance, when unbelievers throw away spiritual literature you share with others or derail your efforts to spread the gospel, don’t sit down and grovel about it! Create more fliers announcing church events, write more letters to stop in-justices, build more websites and blogs, organize more protests, and schedule more meetings to make necessary changes. In other words, continue to expose wrongdoing without ceasing! Stop giving to causes that misappropriate funds and give to your own ministry that God has called you to work! The most powerful message of all when dealing with troublemakers is silence. Walk away from angry, combative people, but be sure your back is covered before turning around! The enemy doesn’t know what to do when you aren’t standing in front of him or her running your mouth and speaking loudly like he or she does with you.

Solution:

 

According to Proverbs 22:24-25, Make no friendship with an angry man, and with a furious man do not go, lest you learn his ways, and set a snare for your soul.

A look back…

You may remember times when you were ready for a good debate and you prepared for it by having everything you could imagine in your mind with the intent of belittling your victims. So you thought of those moments they wronged you and others, you planned to bring up some secrets they told you to hurt them, so they would feel really bad about hurting you.

As Christians, we must be careful arguing with troublemakers and bringing up their past. You can’t very well win someone to Christ with that kind of reaction. Despite how far removed they are from God, the trouble-making critics’ information should remain confidential. The enemy will tempt you to share details with flattery, bribes, and more, don’t.

If situations, like what has been mentioned in this chapter ever happened to you, how did you deal with your enemy?

 

 

When talking about your faith with a troublemaker keep in mind, you don’t want the sinner not to come to God because of your fire and brimstone gospel mixed with your angry temperament. Remember you were once like the trouble-making critic (and for some of you reading this, you still are). There were people who you met since giving your life to Christ that have been kind, sincere, loving, and patient—hold on to those experiences and mimic them, according to God’s will.

Scripture Reference

Proverbs 22:10

Proverbs 29:22

Philippians 2:14

James 1:20

Prayer

Help me Lord to speak the right words at the right time. Remind me to stay in control of my emotions and give me the strength to walk away when I am tempted to want to argue in Jesus name.