An elephant and a giraffe walked together to a watering hole on the African plain. It was a cool and pleasant evening, and they were talking about life. When they reached the water hole, they saw a large turtle sunning himself on a log. Without saying a word, the elephant walked over and kicked the turtle, sending him spinning out over the water until he landed with a huge splash. “Why did you do that?” the giraffe asked his friend. “Thirty years ago I came to this same water hole and that turtle snapped at my trunk,” the elephant replied. “You have an amazing memory,” the giraffe said. “Yes,” said the elephant. “I have turtle recall!”
Even those of us who struggle with remembering what we were supposed to get at the grocery store, or why we walked into a room, find it easy to remember those who have treated us wrongly. We tend to nurse our injuries, rehearsing the details and thinking about ways in which we could get even. Holding on to the pains of the past harms us in two ways. First, the more time we spend focused on them, the more painful they become. Rather than allowing the wound to heal, we keep picking at the scab and making it worse.
Second, the longer we think about injuries done to us, the more likely we are to attempt revenge for what happened. This leads to all sorts of evils. Paul wrote, “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord” (Romans 12:19). The pain that we suffer is real, but faith in God allows us to trust Him to bring true justice to those who have done us wrong.
You can and should trust God to apply justice rather than trying to get even for yourself.
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