Key Bible Verses: "Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. Pray for the happiness of those who curse you" (Luke 6:27-28). Bonus Reading: Luke 6:29-36

At Antietam, 10,000 were killed in a single hour. At Gettysburg, 2,000 men charged across a field and up a hill; less than 300 struggled back alive. The nation recovered from its incredible losses (more American lives lost in the Civil War than in any other) nursing great hatred.

Yet in the South, one man led in reconciliation. Urging forgiveness. Tirelessly urging those who'd fought for the Confederacy to pray daily for their former enemies. Writing hundreds of letters to friends across the South, urging no return to hostilities or rebellion.

He was Robert E. Lee, commanding general of the Confederacy. When asked to wear his uniform for a parade, Lee refused, saying, "I'm a soldier no longer." When a visiting clergyman criticized the North at a social gathering, Lee pulled the man aside, saying, "Doctor, there's a good old Book which I read and you preach from that says — [he quoted today's Key Bible Verses]. Do you think your remarks were quite in the spirit of that teaching? Since the War's end, I have never cherished toward them bitter or vindictive feelings, and have never seen that day when I did not pray for them."

My Response: To obey my Lord, I've decided to quit making critical remarks about …

Thought to Apply: I am a patient man—always willing to forgive on the Christian terms of repentance, and also to give ample time for repentance.
—Abraham Lincoln

Adapted from: Choosing to Live the Blessing (WaterBrook, 1997) by permission.