Love Your Enemy

3 Nephi 12:43-44

"43 And behold it is written also, that thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy;
44 But behold I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you,do good to them that hate you, and pray for them who despitefully use you and persecute you."


This scripture states that normal society tells us to hate our enemies. But in this scripture it tells us that it is better to love your enemies. You need to be nice to both your enemies as well as your allies. This is important because we ever know what people are going through. Though they may seem annoying or rude at first, by being nice to them they may cease to be our enemy. In fact, they may even become your friend!

I had one such experience with this. In seventh grade there was this girl in my PE class. I thought that she was really stuck up and was really rude, even though everyone loved her (she actually wasn't stuck up, but that was my view back then). I avoided her like the plague until the end of eighth grade, when I was against her team in badminton. Then in ninth grade for one of our english assignments, I had started to walk towards one of my friends. She spoke up and asked me if I wanted to be her partner. I hesitated, then agreed. Through the experience of being her partner, I gained a friend. I cane to realize just how awesome she was - how kind, smart, understanding, and beautiful she was. I don't see her often, but when I do, I feel joy, rather than disgust. I consider her to be a great friend.

Though she didn't start out as a real enemy, by being "tolerant" of her, I gained a friend. I am grateful for that english assignment for bringing me closer to her.

I truly believe that by being nice to your "enemy", you can gain a friend. We need to be kind to everyone becase you never know what they are going through. It may be tough to be nice to a particular person, but by trying you will be happier for it.