Devotional for Sunday, March 19, 2017
“A Simple Rule of Thumb”
by Dona Hake
It seems our world is growing colder all the time. Actions and words can be so insensitive at times, and we as believers need to guard our hearts and minds that we know we are keeping ourselves in the love walk that the Lord has commanded for us. I find it so sad at times the insensitivity of the words and actions of people. Words can hurt and bruise deeply and actions many times convey unspoken words and attitudes. Many times people will try to justify themselves for they feel they are just speaking the truth bu it does not matter, if our words do not proceed from a heart of love, they will not be right. Jesus had something important to say about this. I have heard these words of His spoken many times over…”Do onto others as you would have them do onto you.” I love the Message’s translation because it sums it up simply.
Matthew 7:12 (MSG)
“Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior:
Ask yourself what you want people to do for you,
then grab the initiative and do it for them.”
I love how this says to “grab the initiative and do it for them.” It is so easy to think about how we feel we should be treated yet do we take hold of the initiative to be thinking about the feelings of others around us? May this remind us to stop and take initiative to do the right thing when we see what the right thing is!
With the help of God’s love, He can show us the needs of people around us. Many times we just need to stay aware of what God is seeing, and be aware of many times our lives can sadly become self-centered. May we be sensitive and aware of the needs around us. I think it would be a good habit to ponder our words before we speak them, and think about our actions. Think to yourself, “Is this how I would want to be spoken to or is this how I would want someone to act in my presence.”
May we make this scripture a prayer over our lives. Also, it you have someone in your life that has mistreated you or hurting you with words, these are powerful words to pray for them in order that their eyes would be open to their behavior. I believe these words spoken by Jesus are those of power and they are meant for us to live by!
