COAL

Today I saw some black coal which reminds me of a wise proverb in the Old Testament which says, "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the LORD will reward you" (Proverbs 25:21-22). The meaning of this metaphor is that in being kind, instead of retaliating, we are giving opportunity to the person who has behaved badly towards to us, to feel burning shame and conviction of wrong doing. In saying that the LORD will reward us, it does not imply that we do it for the reward but that God is pleased with our attitude and response. Apostle Paul repeats this proverb and tells us that God says that He is the one who avenges on our behalf (see Romans 12:19) and, also, "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good".(Romans 12:21). We cannot force someone to change but also, don't let another person's bad behaviour towards you cause you to behave badly towards them too. In so doing, you will undoubtedly harm yourself and not necessarily even harm them.