We’re all on the same team!

Jesus said, “Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults…That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging” (Matthew 7:1-2 MSG). Think about it. Do you really want to live your life judging and being judged? One Christian author put it this way: “We were created to be in community…[Not] treat each other with a spirit of judgment…There’s something in us that permits us to vie for a better impression of ourselves by belittling someone else. It rages through the teenage years, and should end when we ‘grow up,’ but instead it mutates…We judge each other’s relationships when our own are crumbling…or their parenting skills when our own are hanging by a thread…Someone who never exercises is ‘lazy’…Someone who hides their feelings is ‘cold’…we judge who has what job, who’s busier, who has more stress, who has it ‘rougher.’ Someone tells us bad news and we secretly rejoice that it’s not us…someone shares good news and we call them arrogant. But no one wins because we’re all on the same team.” Instead of judging and criticizing, Paul says, “When we have the opportunity to help…we should do it” (Galatians 6:10 NCV). So, (1) look for a way to bless somebody who is not in a position to reciprocate; (2) identify someone you can encourage today; and (3) go out of your way to make someone feel special. Jesus said, “If you give to others, you will be given a full amount in return…The way you treat others is the way you will be treated.”