This word is submitted by Teresa Seputis (TS@godspeak.org)

------

                  Let Offense Take No Root In You

Child of Mine, I want to break the power of offense in your life, for 
offense is the greatest enemy of unity and love.  Offense prevents you 
from truly loving one another, it makes My little ones unable to bear 
one another up in My love.

Offense comes when you focus on yourself instead of focusing on Me. It
comes when you try to protect your own self-worth instead of receiving 
your sense of value from Me.  Child, you are of such great value to Me. 
There is no need for you to become offended, no matter what man may say 
to you.  There is no need to be offended when someone treats you of 
lesser value.  Their words and their actions cannot change your value 
in Me, it will remain great. 

Take your example from My Son, Who did not speak in His defense when 
falsely accused.  He was not offended when publicans and sinners sought 
Him out. He never acted in offense, even when people lied about Him and 
spoke wrongly of Him and misquoted Him.  That is because He know Who 
He was in Me. He knew that another's words or opinion about Him had no 
power to decrease His true worth.  My Son did not allow Himself to be 
defined by the words or actions of others, He was defined solely by what 
I had to say of Him.  And because of this, He was not easily offended.

I want you to be like Him.  I am asking you to lay down self and lay 
down any rights to offense that you think you have.  I am asking you to 
stop perceiving your value based on how others treat you or based on 
what they say about you. Instead take your value based on who I define 
you to be.  Then you will be secure in My love and you will not be 
easily offended.

Never allow offense to cause division in your midst.  Become the peace
maker and strive for unity in My body.  Begin to treat others as though 
you prefer them over yourself, show them that they are of value and 
worth in My kingdom.  When they say or do something that is hurtful or 
annoying, do not allow offense to take root.  Instead, commit the offense 
into My hands and choose to love the offender.

I have commanded My children to love one another. It is so much easier 
to do this when you do not allow offense to take root in your heart.  So 
come to Me and ask me to break the power of offense off of your life.  I 
will surely do this for you if you ask.  And I will empower you to love 
your brethren and to live in unity with them, that My name might be 
glorified in your midst.