1 Thessalonians 5

I’ve been seeing a lot of ugly people lately.

I don’t mean physically unattractive. In fact, if you’re reading this, you should know that you’re beautiful.

I mean that I’ve been seeing a lot of ugly behavior. A lot of mean comments on Facebook. A lot of rudeness at the grocery store. A general disregard for the well-being of others. I’ll even admit that I’m guilty of this at times. The thing is, when I see this behavior, I want to return what they’re dishing out. I want to get ugly right back. That’s not what we’re called to do, though.

¹⁵ See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. ¹⁶ Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray without ceasing, ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:15-18, ESV

Paul gives a great deal of encouragement in 1 Thessalonians 5. I honestly thought about just copying the entire text and then signing off by wishing you a happy Friday. It’s a short chapter; I encourage you to give it a read today. The important point I want to share is that in the text we see a reminder that we, like the church in Thessalonica, are not of the darkness. We are in the light, and that should be reflected by our actions and our reactions. Let’s take that and run with it. Let’s seek to do good to one another.