when socks don't match
i was just about to head out the door (yes, i realize it is nearly 1:00 p.m.-- can you blame me for being lazy on a rare free friday??), on the way to mckinney to run some errands. i grabbed socks from the sock drawer, noticed they both had yellow toes, put them on, then the shoes. but i had a haunting suspicion: were they the same yellow-toed socks, or were they different? one seemed to feel slightly different than the other. the groves around my ankles seemed slightly wider on one foot than the other. would anyone notice? i thought. no i answered. but i would notice. i unlaced both shoes and discovered that the socks were, indeed, different.
i seriously doubt anyone at the post office, home depot, or the dmv would care. just another 30-something slob who obviously dosen't live with mom anymore (hi, mom!) but it did make me wonder: how often do we have things going on in life that we know are wrong, but think, "it doesn't matter; no one will notice!" maybe they are little things like mis-matched socks. but what about when it's worse? what about those times when we think what we are doing only affects us? and then we are discovered and we see the devastation we have caused in others' lives?
i speak of sin, of course. we love sin. we see someone else doing something wrong, or someone else's picture on the news and it makes us inwardly satisfied. someone else messed up. jerk. i would never do that to people i love. but what are we doing behind closed doors and away from view? the other day someone mentioned the cliche that goes like this: "people know who you really are by watching you when you think you are alone." i suppose it's true, but it always makes me nervous. so are we meant to spy on each other? or what about, "you can hide from others, but not from God!" is God some heavenly stalker, waiting in the bushes to pounce on our bad behavior?
we would so well to remember Jesus' words: "why do you notice the little piece of dust in your friend's eye, but you won't notice the big piece of wood in your own eye? how can you say to your friend, 'let me take that little piece of dust out of your eye.' look at yourself! you still have that big piece of wood in your own eye! you hypocrite! first take the wood out of your own eye. then you will see clearly to take the dust out of your friend's eye" (matthew 7:3-5).
today, let's do some internal and external inventory. it's never fun, but it can be liberating, even lifesaving for us and those we love. what are we doing that we think doesn't hurt others because only we know about it? how is our hypocritical attitude toward others who fail covering up our own need to stop behavior we know is wrong? what logs must we remove from our eyes?
i seriously doubt anyone at the post office, home depot, or the dmv would care. just another 30-something slob who obviously dosen't live with mom anymore (hi, mom!) but it did make me wonder: how often do we have things going on in life that we know are wrong, but think, "it doesn't matter; no one will notice!" maybe they are little things like mis-matched socks. but what about when it's worse? what about those times when we think what we are doing only affects us? and then we are discovered and we see the devastation we have caused in others' lives?
i speak of sin, of course. we love sin. we see someone else doing something wrong, or someone else's picture on the news and it makes us inwardly satisfied. someone else messed up. jerk. i would never do that to people i love. but what are we doing behind closed doors and away from view? the other day someone mentioned the cliche that goes like this: "people know who you really are by watching you when you think you are alone." i suppose it's true, but it always makes me nervous. so are we meant to spy on each other? or what about, "you can hide from others, but not from God!" is God some heavenly stalker, waiting in the bushes to pounce on our bad behavior?
we would so well to remember Jesus' words: "why do you notice the little piece of dust in your friend's eye, but you won't notice the big piece of wood in your own eye? how can you say to your friend, 'let me take that little piece of dust out of your eye.' look at yourself! you still have that big piece of wood in your own eye! you hypocrite! first take the wood out of your own eye. then you will see clearly to take the dust out of your friend's eye" (matthew 7:3-5).
today, let's do some internal and external inventory. it's never fun, but it can be liberating, even lifesaving for us and those we love. what are we doing that we think doesn't hurt others because only we know about it? how is our hypocritical attitude toward others who fail covering up our own need to stop behavior we know is wrong? what logs must we remove from our eyes?
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