~ by Terry Walters
Matthew 7:1-5
When I was a young boy, we lived just
a few blocks from the grade school.
I was a picky eater, so I almost never
ate the school lunch. I could run
home, eat the hot lunch that my mom fixed,
and run back in time for noon recess.
One day, I didn't make it back to school.
I was facing the screen door
of our house when it slammed
shut and something flew into my eye!
We didn't know what it was
until later at the hospital.
Not only did it hurt, but it
irritated my eye so bad
I couldn't keep my eye open.
Mom tried to get it out.
We tried to flush it out with water.
It wouldn't stop hurting!
We finally decided I would have to go to the ER.
When we got there, a doctor was able
to use a bright light and a
magnifying glass to locate the culprit.
It was a tiny piece of screen
wire from the screen door!
Fortunately, it didn't do any damage,
but while it was in there,
I couldn't see anything!
Can you imagine me trying to help
someone else who had a speck in their eye?
The parable speaks of trying it
with a big log in your own eye!
No way would that even be possible!
I'm sure glad the doctor didn't try such a thing!
Jesus was using hyperbole -
exaggeration to prove a point.
Don't be critical of other people
and try to fix them until you've
taken care of your own faults.
Even if your intentions are more noble,
your own sins can blind you and
keep you from being effective at helping others.
Take care of your own sins first!
Prayer: Heavenly Father, keep us from a critical spirit.
Help us to keep our own lives
clean just because You deserve it.
Only then could we really help someone,
so, help us know when to do that.
P.S. I used to wear glasses all the time – before contacts.
I was working farm construction in AR and
helping to build a metal horse barn.
The saw I used to cut the metal
siding caused sparks to fly.
I felt safe because I wore glasses.
Later, I was seeing dark spots
and wondered if I was having eye trouble.
Then, I saw there were spots on my glasses.
I kept trying to wipe them clean.
It turned out the sparks had burned
into my lenses! The spots I was seeing
were actual spots on my glasses!
Books by Terry - My Blog - My Facebook Page - Parables of Jesus - Daily Devotions Page