Are You Thankful for HATERS?

Yeah, I know the title got your attention! So let’s just jump right into it, shall we?

At New Beginnings we recently had a Thanksgiving Dinner in place of our regular Thursday night group session. Everyone brought a dish to pass and we had an amazing meal of turkey, cheesy potatoes, salad (made by staff), corn bread dressing (Shaneka), homemade mac n’ cheese (Dana), green bean casserole (Resident Assistants), apple pie (Volunteer, Lisa), and more! What a blessing.
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After the meal, we had a short devotion and then wrote down some of the blessings in our lives. I was surprised by the range of answers: friends, family, sharing this meal together, police officers, education, toys (yes, kids were present, but I am thankful for toys too!), and Jesus, were just some of the answers. One of the blessings that surprised me most was “haters,” and I can honestly tell you it was written down by more than one person. Now before I go any further, let’s see how Urban Dictionary defines a “hater:” 

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hater 
A person that simply cannot be happy for another person's success. So rather than be happy they make a point of exposing a flaw in that person. 

Hating, the result of being a hater, is not exactly jealousy. The hater doesn't really want to be the person he or she hates, rather the hater wants to knock someone else down a notch.​

I can honestly say that I would never think to write down this blessing, but I am happy that someone did! I believe that all of us have experienced a “hater” or two in our lifetime; you know, that person who isn’t happy for you when you finish your degree, fall in love, or start bettering yourself? Yep.

​It is unfortunate that our residents also experience this;  coming into the New Beginnings’ program can be a major life change. Often times, our residents have at least one “friend,” or even family member, that does not support their decision to make a change in their lives. Despite the lack of support, we can all have the motivation to move forward knowing that we have a support system at New Beginnings AND, more importantly, that God supports us! 

In fact, God is not a stranger to haters ; he says in Psalm 69: 4-5 “Those who hate me without reason outnumber the hairs of my head; many are my enemies without cause, those who seek to destroy me. I am forced to restore what I did not steal. You know my folly, O God; my guilt is not hidden from you.” God also knows that people who criticize those who are on the right track do so because sin loves company. ​He says, 

“ They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips,  slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents;  they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy.  Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them” (Romans 1:29-32). 

Ultimately, we can be thankful for our “haters” because they remind us that we are on the right track. In fact, our hope is that those who criticize us for doing well will soon follow in our footsteps! God never said our path would be easy, but he did say…say it along with me, I know you know this one… 

“ For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11).

​On this Thanksgiving, New Beginnings prays that  you can find a blessing in everything. Wishing you a blessed Thanksgiving, from our family to yours!

​Brianne Kluge is the Home Manager at New Beginnings. She grew up in Marshall, WI and graduated from Lakeside Lutheran High School. Brianne has a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. In her free time, she enjoys singing, camping, refurbishing furniture and spending time with her fiancé, Daniel.