Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Romans 12:21
Evil can hang a shroud of despair over any word in our lives. It may be the name of a person who has deeply hurt us, or a place where we failed, or a time when we were rejected. But God’s love has dynamic power to redefine the most painful words. In Romans 12, God gives us the antidote for the poison of evil so prevalent in our hearts and in the world around us: “Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good” (v.9). “Repay no one evil for evil” (v.17). “Do not avenge yourselves” (v.19). “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink” (v.20). “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (v.21). Everything in our lives that has been defined by evil is an opportunity to seek the Lord’s power to overcome it with good. There is no painful word that cannot be redefined by the goodness of God.