Arizona state employment officials in Tucson posted an interesting sign over a full-length mirror. Directed to all job hunters, it read, "Would you hire this person?" In another office a mirror and sign posed this question: "Are you ready for a job?"
 
Self-evaluation was what the apostle Paul called for in 1 Corinthians 11:28-31. Believers in Christ need to examine themselves, he said, to avoid being disciplined by the LORD.
 
In the Corinthian church, the "appearance problem" was especially serious. Those Christians "looked" awful. They were actually getting drunk and quarreling among themselves while going through the motions of celebrating the LORD's Supper. So Paul said, in effect, "Look at yourselves. What a mess! If you don't get your lives straightened out, the LORD will have to do it for you." Then the apostle added the sobering fact that GOD had already begun to cleanse the church by sending some of them to an early grave (vv.29-30). This is a hard truth, but one the church still needs to hear today.
 
This warning, however, also carries a message of hope. If we judge ourselves and repent of our sins, we will not be judged by GOD. —MRDII
 

Socrates once asked a simple old man what he was most thankful for. The man replied, "That being such as I am, I have had the friends I have had."
 
Some "friends" are fickle. In the book of Proverbs we read, "Wealth makes many friends, but the poor is separated from his friend" (19:4). A true friend, however, "loves at all times" (17:17) and "sticks closer than a brother" (18:24).
 
Our English word friend comes from the same root as the word freedom. A genuine friend sets us free to be who and what we are. We can pour out our doubts and talk freely about the wolves howling at the door of our life.
 
A faithful friend also affirms our worth. Queen Victoria said of William Gladstone, "When I am with him, I feel I am with one of the most important leaders in the world." But of Benjamin Disraeli she said, "He makes me feel as if I am one of the most important leaders of the world."
 
Christians have an inside track on making and being friends because we are part of one family. Haven't you felt that family tie while talking with a stranger—only to discover that you had Christ in common? And no wonder—He is the truest Friend anyone can have. —HWR
 

Guam is crawling with snakes. Slithering brown tree snakes are killing the birds of the beautiful island and threatening the citizens' way of life. The people, of course, want to keep the snakes out.
 
These snakes are not native to Guam. They likely came as stowaways on ships from New Guinea, and they have multiplied by the thousands. Known for their voracious appetites, the snakes have wiped out 9 of the island's 11 native bird species. They also threaten other islands with whom Guam trades.
 
Just as these snakes are a danger to Guam, so our sins are a danger to us if we don't deal decisively with them. Sins such as lust, sexual impurity, covetousness, anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language, and lying can show up in the lives of Christians (Colossians 3:5-9). Like snakes, such sins can grow, multiply, and eventually dominate us. They can also destroy our effectiveness in serving Christ and damage our testimony for Him.
 
The solution is to say no to sin (Romans 6:12). We also need to focus on Christ and His word, setting our minds "on things above, not on things on the earth." We must also "put to death" the sins that seek to invade our lives (Colossians 3:2,5,16). That's the way to keep sin out! —JDB
 

Although Christians look forward to having joyful fellowship with each other one day in heaven, our relationships here on earth can often be anything but joyful. Someone has described it this way: "To live above with those we love—that will be grace and glory. To live below with those we know—now, that's a different story!"
 
Isolating ourselves from others doesn't resolve this problem. The one thing we all need, particularly when life is difficult, is fellowship with other believers. First John 1:3 says that Christian fellowship is "with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ," but it's also with each other.
 
We need more than our private "Jesus and me" fellowship, as fundamental as that is. GOD also made us for a "Jesus and we" fellowship. Reuben Welch wrote, "Christians are not brought together because they like each other, but because they share a common life in Jesus and are . . . learning how to love each other as members of the family."
 
How can this deeper love become a reality? We must walk in GOD's light (v.7), be honest about our sins (v.8), and confess them to GOD for forgiveness and cleansing (v.9).
 
If we are to grow more Christlike and learn to love, we need one another. —JEY
 

Two ships collided in the Black Sea in 1986, hurling hundreds of passengers into the icy waters and causing a tragic loss of life. News of the disaster was further darkened when an investigation revealed that the accident was caused by human stubbornness. Each captain was aware of the other ship's presence and both could have taken evasive action to avert the collision. But neither wanted to yield to the other. By the time they saw the error of their ways, it was too late.
 
According to James, even greater havoc and loss can be created in human relationships for similar reasons (3:14-16). We prefer to blame the world's problems on religious or political differences. But James said the root problem is "bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts" (3:14), which stems from pride. That's what caused Lucifer to fall from heaven (Isaiah 14:12), and Adam and Eve to lose their innocence in Eden (Genesis 3:6).
 
So what is the solution? How can we keep selfish ambition and pride from turning into major disasters? We must draw on "the wisdom that is from above"—wisdom that is "pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits" (James 3:17). That will mark the beginning of harmony—not havoc. —MRDII
 

In Acts 10:38, Peter described our LORD as "Jesus of Nazareth, . . . who went about doing good." Those acts of service and kindness were expressed through His earthly body. Since ascending to heaven, Christ no longer has a body on earth except ours. In other words, He has no hands, legs, or feet on earth except for the members of His body, the church. So we must never underestimate the importance of being the body of Christ on earth, not only spiritually but also physically.
 
There's a story of a little child who was put to bed in a dark room. She was fearful of being left alone, so her mother brought her a doll. This didn't satisfy her and she begged her mother to stay. The mother reminded her that she had the doll and GOD, and needn't be afraid. Soon the child began crying. When the mother returned to her side, she sobbed, "Oh, Mommy, I want someone with skin on!"
 
We're all like that child at times. In our loneliness and suffering, Christ doesn't condemn us for wanting "someone with skin on" to be with us and to care for us.
 
Therefore He sends us out to be His body to one another and to the world, and to go about doing good. Remember this: Right now Jesus has no body on earth but ours! —JEY
 

A renowned violinist announced before a concert that he would play one of the world's most expensive violins. His first composition was played flawlessly, and the audience was thrilled at the performance.
 
After taking his bows, the musician suddenly smashed the instrument, completely demolishing it. The audience was horrified—that is, until the violinist explained that he had been playing a cheap violin.
 
Then, picking up the expensive instrument, the virtuoso began to draw the bow across the strings. The sound was beautiful, but most of the people couldn't tell any difference between the music from the expensive violin and the cheap one. The quality of the instrument was secondary to the skill of the violinist.
 
It's something like that in our service for the LORD. The Master can use ordinary instruments like us. If we are yielded to Him, He will produce beautiful music through us. The apostle Paul said that "GOD has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise" (1 Corinthians 1:27). GOD did so, "that no flesh should glory in His presence" (v.29).
 
Like that cheap violin, we can be instruments in the Master's hands to magnify the LORD and bring blessing to others. —RWD
 

Could you improve on a masterpiece? Imagine that you are walking through the Louvre museum in Paris. As you approach the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci, would you think about taking a palette and brushes and touching up the painting? Maybe put some more color in her cheeks? Perhaps change her nose a little?
 
"That's ridiculous!" you say. For nearly 500 years the Mona Lisa has been considered one of the greatest artistic works of all time. How absurd to think we could add anything to this masterpiece!
 
Yet that's what many people try to do with Christ's masterpiece—salvation. They think they must improve on it with some work of their own. But that masterpiece was completed when Jesus said, "It is finished," while hanging on the cross (John 19:30). Then He proved that His work of redemption was done when He rose from the dead.
 
When you hear that Jesus paid the price for your sin and that you don't have to do anything to merit GOD's grace, do you think it's too good to be true? Do you think there's something you must do to earn it?
 
You can't add anything! Receive GOD's gift of salvation. Jesus paid it all. The masterpiece is complete. —JDB
 

A well-known business leader commented on the winners and the losers in his profession. "The winners fly with eagles," he said, "and the losers run with turkeys."
 
When Jesus selected the small group to whom He would entrust His mission in the world, the men appeared to be anything but "eagles." Jesus knew that by His power and grace they could soar, but first He had to teach them to fly together.
 
What a strange mix! There was Peter, impetuous and uncouth. Andrew was simple and believing, but Thomas had a question mark for a mind.
 
Then consider Matthew and Simon. Matthew probably had held his post as tax collector by cooperating with the Romans. Simon the Zealot may have belonged to a guerrilla band determined to make life miserable for the foreign overlords of Rome by disrupting their trade or by rioting in the streets. Think of it—it would be a little like having one from the political right and one from the political left on the same church board.
 
Why this diversity? Perhaps to teach us that loyalty to Jesus comes first. Discipleship, true to its name, requires us to learn love and obedience and submission in a diverse community of faith under one Head—Jesus Christ. —HWR
 

A follower of Christ can find a lot to worry about these days—the moral degeneration of society, the stock market, anti-Christian sentiment, Middle East turmoil, anthrax scares, and on and on. Often we are troubled about what could happen in the future, or we spend way too much time dwelling on the past. Our minds whirl and emotions rise because of some sin we committed or a sad event that occurred years ago.
 
Because we can neither change the past nor manipulate the future, we are peaceless in Pittsburgh, fretful in Fresno, or worried in Washington. How fruitless! How wasteful!
 
Author Jean-Pierre de Caussade said that every day we can experience the peace of GOD when we stop stewing about what might be or what might have been and focus on what is. He wrote, "It is necessary to be disengaged from all we feel and do, in order to walk with GOD in the duty of the present moment. . . . Each moment imposes a virtuous obligation on us which committed souls faithfully obey."
 
But how can we walk with the LORD and experience His peace when we're paralyzed with worry about the past or the future? We can't! No wonder Jesus told us, "Do not worry" (Matthew 6:34). —DCE
 

A woman who restores valuable paintings says many works of art that seem hopelessly damaged can be saved by an expert. Rebecca McLain has brought color and life back to dulled oil paintings by carefully removing dirt and discolored varnish. But she has also seen the damage done when people attempt to clean their own soiled art with oven cleaner or abrasive powders. Her advice? If you value the art, take it to an expert in restoration.
 
The same need exists in lives soiled by sin. Our efforts at ridding ourselves of the guilt and defilement of sinful actions and attitudes often end in frustration and despair. In our attempts to get rid of guilt, we sometimes blame others. Or we simply give up, thinking that we cannot be any different.
 
But Jesus our redeemer is the expert who can restore the most damaged, defiled, and discouraged person. Christ died so that anyone who by faith receives Him can be completely forgiven and restored. With His own blood He will cleanse us (1 John 1:7) and make us a new creation, GOD's own "workmanship" (2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:10).
 
When it comes to cleansing the canvas of our souls, we cannot do it ourselves. Only Jesus Christ can. Call on Him today for expert restoration. —DCM
 

My son Steve wanted to get in shape for the upcoming cross-country season, and I wanted to keep from accumulating middle-age flab. So we started running each evening.
 
As we would begin our excursions, we were full of energy. But as we made our way through the designated route, we grew a bit weary. I decided we needed an incentive to keep us going. So each night, I thought of some kind of prize at the end—something to keep our minds off our bodies and on a reward.
 
One night it was pizza. Whenever Steve wanted to stop, I'd say, "Pizza!" And that kept us going. Another night, I thought of our plans to watch football on TV. So the key word was football. Each night a new prize spurred us on.
 
The believer can also grow weary in living for Christ. We can wonder why we keep going—why we keep pushing ourselves. Paul used an incentive for motivation a long time before I did. He said, "I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of GOD in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14).
 
When life's race gets you down, remember, the greatest incentive you as a Christian have is awaiting you at the finish line—seeing Christ face-to-face and sharing in His eternal glory! Keep that prize in mind, and you'll keep going. —JDB
 

Popular teacher, speaker, and author Howard Hendricks warns against "enshrining" the gospel in a church building. He once wrote, "I can't find a verse of Scripture that commands a lost person to go to church; I know a lot of Scripture that commands believers to go into a lost world."
 
Hendricks then told about a Christian woman who read in the newspaper about a car that crashed into a house and killed a baby. With a compassionate heart, she grieved over the family's loss, but she was also concerned for the driver, who was facing criminal charges. She wrote to the driver, assuring her that GOD cared about her situation. She included her telephone number and then waited to see if she would respond.
 
The devastated woman called her and they agreed to meet. Because of that Christian's witness of GOD's love, that sorrowing woman trusted Christ as her Savior. She then began attending a Bible study and a church. The compassion shown to her resulted in others in her family coming to Christ. She did go to prison for her crime, but her faith strengthened her and made a great impact on other prisoners.
 
When one Christian goes after one lost soul (Luke 15:1-7), there can be salvation and great rejoicing. —JEY
 

A former missionary told the story of two rugged mountain goats who met on a narrow pathway. On one side was a chasm 1,000 feet deep; on the other, a steep cliff rising straight up. There was no room to turn around, and the goats could not back up without falling. What would they do?
 
Finally, instead of fighting for the right to pass, one of the goats knelt down and became as flat as possible. The other goat then walked over him, and they both proceeded safely.
 
In a sense, this is what Jesus Christ did for us when He left heaven's glory and came to this earth to die for our sins. He saw us trapped between our sin and GOD's righteousness with no way to help ourselves. He came in human likeness and took the form of a servant (Philippians 2:5-8). Then, by dying for sinful mankind, He let us "walk over Him" so that we could experience forgiveness and receive eternal life.
 
Peter pointed to Christ as an example of humility. When we are mistreated for Jesus' sake, we must learn to be humble enough to let others walk over us if need be. This is not a sign of weakness but of strength and true humility. Such a response, when done for Christ's sake, brings glory to His name. —DCE
 

Double jeopardy is a legal concept that protects a person from being prosecuted more than once for the same offense.
 
This came into play in the case of a man who confessed to a Wisconsin judge that 2 years earlier in the same court he had been charged with murder and was found innocent. "But I was guilty," he admitted. The judge quickly conferred with the district attorney to see if the man could be brought to trial for murder. They discovered, however, that because of the principle of double jeopardy the man could not be tried again for that crime. Although he was a murderer, he could not be punished for it.
 
According to GOD's justice, we who are "in Christ" were as guilty as that man before we were converted, but now we are just as unpunishable. Why? Not because of a legal technicality. Rather, it's because any and every sin we've ever committed or will commit has been fully prosecuted in Christ on the cross. And once is all that the law demands. There are still consequences when we do wrong, even as believers. But as far as the penalty of the law is concerned, Jesus' death places us in a wonderful position of being exempt from eternal punishment. Thank GOD for His principle of "double jeopardy"! —MRDII
 

The teenager's mom, a bit exasperated by the failure of her youngest child to show the desired maturity, sighed and said, "Two more years of junior high." To which he, in typical style, replied with a smile, "Mom, why don't you just take the next 2 years off!"
 
Often there are things we would simply like to avoid by taking "time off." When we have a chronically sick family member, we may be tempted to just "check out" for a while. When children rebel and make parenting a struggle, we'd prefer a long vacation from the hassle. Then there are those times when we face great spiritual battles that we would like to skip altogether.
 
Paul spoke briefly about such struggles in 2 Thessalonians 3. He mentioned the problem of dealing with people who "walk among you in a disorderly manner, . . . busybodies" (v.11). Facing up to people problems can be frustrating. But Paul gave part of the solution when he said, "Do not grow weary in doing good" (v.13). Another part of the equation is to listen to the psalmist, who said, "Cast your burden on the LORD, and He shall sustain you" (Psalm 55:22).
 
When it's not possible to "take the next 2 years off," we can gain hope from this advice: Keep doing good and keep casting your care on GOD. That's better than taking time off. —JDB