Destroy your Enemies

 “Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?”

― Abraham Lincoln.

    

    When I was around 7 or 8 years old there was a girl who went to my church who didn't like me very much. She was a year or two older than I was and could be pretty mean to me at times. I remember one night at church when she had been particularly upset, I went home and told my mom what had been going on. My mom decided we would 'heap some coals' and see if we could make the situation any better. The girl loved cats, so my mom took me to the store, and we picked out a little cat decoration for her. Then we baked them an apple pie and took both to her house. When we got there she wouldn't even come out of her room, but we left the pie and the gift for her. I thought it was great and pretty funny, because we did something nice to a mean person. The girl never very mean to me after that, and I have always remembered what we did.

    So what's the best way to get rid of your enemies? I think Mr. Lincoln had the right idea. If you use his method, you not only lose an enemy, you also gain a friend. So what are some good ways to destroy your enemies? Below I have my top five tips for destroying enemies.

1. Smile

It really gets to people when they're rude to you and you smile at them. If they are unpleasant, be pleasant. It will keep you a lot happier too...it's really hard to give someone a big smile and still feel really mad.

2. Do something nice for them

Straight from Scripture, overcome evil with good. Heap coals of fire upon their heads.

3. When you see them, greet them enthusiastically

When you see them walk into a room, ask them how they are (smile) act like they're your friend...a man that hath friends must shew himself friendly

4. Say something nice to them

"I really like your shirt, that color looks good on you", "you sounded really nice when you sang in church", "you played really well in the football game!"...a simple, sincere compliment will let them know that you don't have any bad feelings towards them. Don't be a flatterer, just be kind.

5. Live like Christ

In a story I once heard, a man said that the worst kind of enemy is one that you secretly respect. If you live above reproach, show kindness to others even when they are mean to you, and try to live like you should, people will respect you even if they won't admit it. If you act with humility and love it will be much easier to destroy your enemies and gain many friends.