HAVE YOU BEEN FALSELY and UNFAIRLY ACCUSED?

PT 1 of 2

What do you do when you falsely and unfairly accused by people you know and love and thought you could trust?

it’s one thing to be falsely accused by total strangers. It’s something else when people in your inner circle and those of your own household turn against you. Because it is personal, the pain is much greater and the disappointment and grief can become extremely heavy to bear.

How does a Born-Again Believer respond in that situation?

I started off by thinking about those of my own household my friends and then broadened out to consider Biblical principles that apply to all of us when we are falsely and unfairly accused.

We must Remember what Yahshua Messiah said.

“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me” (Matthew 5:11).

That phrase “all kinds of evil” means that the followers of Yahshua will endure insults, lies, ridicule and false accusations, and those attacks will come in many different ways. The world crucified the Master of Glory so we should not be surprised when the world attacks those who follow Him. Satan will use any instrument that is available to him even those of your own household whom you love dearly. All one has to do is open a door and he will try and bring division and destruction.

Some of these attacks will come against our faith.

Sometimes our motives will be questioned.

Sometimes our words will be twisted.

Sometimes we will be ostracized for our views.

Sometimes we will be deliberately be misquoted.

Sometimes we will be the victims of a whispering campaign where we can’t even pin down the things said against us. The point to remember here is that these things will happen from time to time. It’s part of what it means to be a follower of Messiah.

FIGHT AGAINST BECOMING A VICTIM.

You know you’re in the victim mode when (a) you feel betrayed or wronged, (b) usually by your family and friends, (c) involving false and unfair accusations, (d) where you can’t get your side of the story fairly told, so that (e) the whole thing eats at you day and night, and (f) you can’t stop talking about it, so that (g) you become consumed with “the issue” until (h) you lose your focus completely and (i) sometimes say or do foolish things that (j) hurt yourself and others and (k) permanently damage relationships so that (l) you end up miserable and frustrated and (m) nothing is solved.

WE MAKE A MISTAKE IN TRYING ALWAYS TO CLEAR OURSELVES.

In almost all these situations, the truth from YAHWEH’S point of view will be more than what you see or what your critics see. And Elohim’s will always go beyond our limited field of vision.

WE NEED TO GUARD OUR HEART.

“Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life” (Proverbs 4:23). We desperately need that reminder when we are under attack. Let’s face it. Unless we guard our own heart, we will soon be down in the gutter with our opponents. We’ll be tempted to answer in kind, to attack them as they have attacked us, to vilify them, to smear their reputation, and in general to do whatever we have to do to get even with them.

It’s frightening how quickly we can fall into the attack mode when we are angry and hurt.

Remember this. You can’t control what people do to you or what they say about you. In the Internet age, anyone with a computer can make any sort of ugly attack, post it on the Internet and hide behind a cloak of anonymity. Technology has made it too easy to say whatever we want and then post it on Facebook or YouTube or in a private message. So, our challenge must be to guard our own heart when we are under attack. As we can’t control what people do to you or what they say about you.

How do we GUARD our hart? Here are a few suggestions . . .

Stay in the Word.

Meditate on the promises of Elohim (God).

Listen to Gospel music.

Sing a lot–out loud.

Hang out with positive people.

Ask your friends to hold you accountable for how you respond.

Pray that Messiah might be magnified in your life.

Keep an eye out for “Elohim sightings.”

Stay busy serving others.

Practice daily repentance.

Give thanks that the Heavenly Father is working in ways you can’t imagine through these attacks.

Pray for those who have falsely and unfairly accused you.

Forgive and forgive and forgive. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

I don’t believe in “miracle prayers” that allow you to say a few words and then wash away the deep pain of life. But I do believe in forgiving again and again and again. Better to come back to the place of forgiveness than to live in the swamp of bitterness. Harboring resentment is like drinking poison and hoping the other guy will die. It’s self-destructive behavior.

. . . . to be continued.