Blog

by Ami Samuels

What if you met Jesus and he had a question for you: “How did you treat my children? Were you loving, forgiving, kind, generous, gracious, fair, and honest? Or were you calloused, cold, impatient, indifferent, manipulative, controlling, calculating, and self-absorbed?”

The world tells us that we need to get ours, to be number one, and that second place is the first loser. Another worldly view is that we need to look out for ourselves because nobody else will. I do believe that healthy competition can be good, but winning at any cost, sacrificing our integrity and character, is going too far. I have seen this many times in sports. Win at any cost. If you aren’t number one you are nothing. We are losing the sense of team in our society. It is all about worshipping the starting five, the starting nine, or starting eleven. What about the player who gives one hundred percent at practice, works his hardest, performs to the best of his ability but never makes the starting lineup? Is player not good enough by society’s standards, because his skills in a sport aren’t as good as another player’s? Would Jesus be on the field hailing the starters, or would he be on the bench encouraging the guys who aren’t playing yet? Jesus would be lifting up the one who never sees the field, never has his name in the paper, or never gets a chance to swing away in the game.

In John 15:12-13, Jesus says, “My command is this: love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this that he lay down his life for his friends.”

As we grow in our Christian walk, are we learning to follow Jesus’ example? Are we deciding to put others before ourselves? This is easier said than done. The next time you are in traffic and there’s that guy who races to the front without waiting his turn, do you let him in? The rude store clerk messes up your transaction yet again, and you have already been waiting to check out for fifteen minutes; will you be patient and kind? The kid in school who continually bullies your child asks you to buy something in support of his sports team; do you respond in a kind manner and buy his product?

WWJD – What Would Jesus Do in these situations? I believe he would show mercy and grace. I believe he would put others before himself. Jesus says in Matthew 19:30, “But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.” We fight tooth and nail to be first here on earth, when our focus should be on following Jesus’ example, wherever that lands us.

At the end of our lives, who will we say we followed, the world or Jesus? It is never too late to start following Jesus’ example in our lives.

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