The Least Of These

Even Jesus did not spend every waking hour helping the poor. He dined with the wealthy, celebrated at weddings and feasts, taught in the synagogue, and perhaps even did a bit of carpentry. Still, there is no question that His love for the poor found consistent and concrete expression in His life and ministry. The question for you and for me is this: will Christ find evidence of our genuine concern for His beloved poor when He looks at the fruit on that day? Further, what might He be calling you to do today? What new steps of faith might you take to demonstrate your own concern for "the least of these"?

The Hole In Our Gospel, Rich Stearns

The Good In Others

To live and think as Jesus did is to discover the sincerity, goodness, and truth often hidden behind the gross, coarse exteriors of our fellow human beings. It is to see the good in others that they don't see in themselves and to affirm this good in the face of powerful evidence to the contrary. It is not a blind optimism that ignores the reality of evil but a perspective that acknowledges the good so repeatedly and so insistently that the wayward must eventually respond in agreement. 

The Importance of Being Foolish, Brennan Manning

Habits

God never makes character; God puts into us the disposition of His Son, and on that basis we have to form character. As we form the habit of doing things in accordance with the disposition of Jesus Christ we are backed by inward supplies of God's grace. Every habit begins with difficulty. Habit is a mechanical process of which we have ceased to become conscious. A man who is right with God does the right thing instinctively.

Still Higher For His Highest, Oswald Chambers