On the Flip SideSample

In church, we can often hear that the most important thing we need to do is "Know the right things," "Avoid the bad things," or "Just have faith!" But is there more to following Jesus than this? Jesus tells a funny story about a guy who was trying to get a little splinter out of someone else's eye while having a whole log the size of a baseball bat in his own eye! The point is that sometimes we think the problem is "out there," but Jesus invites us to look within first.

As Christians, we can often look at other people "out there" and think "they" have it all wrong, but what if there are also things that need to be fixed within? Paul writes to the church in Corinth, reminding them that loving Jesus is much more than "doing the right things" and simply "having faith." He mentions if he does all these things without love, it amounts to nothing. Nothing? Yup, nothing! This means we don't just love those who love us, but we even love our "enemies."

Today, think about someone who you find hard to love and try extending a small act of kindness.