Michelle was born into a family with a long-standing grudge. She was aware from an early age that her mother and grandmother did not get along with one another. Family birthdays and holiday celebrations could not bring them together in one house. If one was invited, the other refused to come.

When Michelle became a believer in Christ as a teenager, this bitterness in her family saddened her. She attempted to be the peacemaker. She went to both her mother and grandmother to find out the cause of this resentment. To her great surprise, neither could remember exactly what had started the feud more than 20 years earlier. All they knew was that the other person was to blame.

Many of us have let not only a day go by with anger in our heart against someone, but also weeks, months, and years. Let's be honest: time does not heal all wounds. The passing of time often hardens anger into bitterness. As we replay someone's offense over and over in our minds, it grows in importance and in the pain it has caused us.

God warns us that harboring resentment in our hearts is playing into the devil's schemes. Stored up bitterness may explode one day into verbal abuse or even violence. God tells us to grasp his peace instead of growing bitter and hateful.