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| (Monroe) |
How far do I want to follow Jesus?
As one of his disciples, my starting place is not to condemn and critique others. Rather, I am to look in the mirror and examine myself. I am to cry out, "Search me, Oh God, and know my heart!"
I have enough stuff to occupy my inner searching for a lifetime.
As Jesus said:
Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
Matthew 7:3-5
This is wise, beautiful counsel. I can share, from my own experience, that it is hard being the judge of all people. It has kept me awake at times. It has made me angry. If affects how I view others. When entertained, the captive audience becomes bitter.
Lisa Bevere once wrote that she probably had enough planks in her eyes to build an entertainment center. (Lisa Bevere, The True Measure of a Woman, p. 32)
It's demolition day, and I am a plank-remover.
Only then will my self-righteousness be gone, and, aided by the Spirit, accompanied by compassion and caring love, I might be used of God to engage in the delicate task of speck-removal.
