2 Corinthians 13:9
“…and this also we wish, even your perfection.”

Paul had every reason to be frustrated with the Corinthians. They questioned him. Criticized him. Undermined him. If anyone could have said, “Lord, deal with them,” it was Paul.

But he didn’t.

He said, “We wish your perfection.” The word speaks of maturity, of being restored, set right, made complete. Paul was not praying for their embarrassment. He was praying for their excellence.

That kind of heart does not happen naturally.

Naturally, when someone wounds us, we want vindication. We want exposure. We want justice to fall hard and fast. But Paul shows a different way. He shows the way of prayer.

You cannot consistently pray God’s best over someone and keep a bitter spirit at the same time. It is like trying to hold ice in your hand while standing in the summer sun. One of them will give. And usually, it is the ice.

When you begin to pray, “Lord, bless him. Mature him. Draw her closer to You,” something shifts. Maybe they change. Maybe they do not. But you change. Your sharp edges soften. Your desire for revenge quietly dies. Your heart begins to want their restoration more than their ruin.

It is like a gardener tending a plant that once scratched him. He could rip it out. Instead, he waters it. Over time, it grows straight and strong. And in the watering, the gardener’s frustration gives way to care.

Jesus said, “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you” (Matthew 5:44). That is not sentimental. That is supernatural. It requires prayer. It requires time in the presence of the One who prayed, “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34).

If there is someone in your life you secretly hope stumbles, try this instead. Pray them forward. Pray their maturity. Pray their perfection in Christ.

You might discover that the first person perfected in the process is you.