Daily Devotional for March 29, 2018
A Lesson in Mud
“But why can’t I go?” Sky asked when her parents wouldn’t let her go see a movie with a group of girls from school.
“Sky, I don’t think that movie is a good one for you to see,” Mom said. “You can see another movie with them sometime.”
“But everybody’s going to that one!” said Sky. “Besides, I’m trying to be a witness to my friends. If you never let me do anything with them, how will I ever get them to listen when I tell them about Jesus?”
“I’m glad you want to help them get to know Him,” replied Dad, “but joining them in making unwise decisions is not the way to show them Jesus.”
As they were talking, one of the neighbors came to the door. “Can you give me a hand?” asked Mr. Cox. “I got stuck in the mud down at the corner. Think you could pull me out?”
“Sure,” said Dad. “Want to come along, Sky?” She nodded, so they jumped into Dad’s truck and were off to the rescue.
When they got to the corner, Dad began to back the truck right down into the muddy area where the car was stuck. “No, Dad!” said Sky. “We’ll get stuck too!”
“This truck has a lot of power,” Dad replied. “We’ll be all right.”
But they did get stuck. “You were right, Sky,” Dad said. “This mud is deeper than I thought. Driving into it to help Mr. Cox was not a wise decision on my part. I should have listened to you.”
Sky sighed. “You’re talking about more than just the mud we’re stuck in, aren’t you?”
Dad nodded. “Trying to help friends by joining them in things that are wrong or unwise is like going down into this mud in an effort to help Mr. Cox. In the end, nobody is helped at all.”
“So you’re saying that to really help my friends, I have to be wise about what I do with them?”
“Exactly,” said Dad. “I would have been more helpful to Mr. Cox if I’d tried to pull him out without going into the mud. And you can help your friends understand who Jesus is without doing something you—or your parents—don’t think is a good idea.” – Sherry L. Kuyt
How about you?
Do you want to introduce friends to Jesus? Have you thought they’d listen better if you joined them in what they do—even if those things are wrong or unwise? Doing things like that won’t help them see who Jesus is, and it won’t help you grow as a child of God. Instead, trust Jesus to show you opportunities to share His love with others without doing things that are wrong or unwise.
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