Think On These Things Thursday

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Matthew 22:37-40

Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

I have several thoughts today. First, has anyone else noticed that there seems to be those out there who are using the economy as an excuse to exploit others. I have seen it in employers--you better do this and with a smile--you're just lucky you have a job--giving people extra hours (no compensation) because they've laid off other people, etc.! I have seen it in people hiring others to do their work at really reduced rates and being smug about it. I can understand a bit of a deal, but less than half the going rate???? We won't even discuss the government!!! I think this is really sad. Talk about kicking others when they are already down. What happened to treating others like we would like to be treated. It is usually the people who would be the first to scream if they were taken advantage of. How do they sleep at night? In their defense, most of the above has probably not crossed their mind. Sorry about the rant!

We need to be careful how we treat others. Make sure the above mentioned philosphy is not allowed on our doorstep!

A lesson from "T": We were helping our new youth pastor and family move into their apartment. Our whole family had arrived early and all of us were carrying things in, including the kids. Eventually, we ended up with about a dozen adults. I didn't want the kids to get stepped on or knocked over by a sofa, so I thanked them for their help and asked them to please stop for awhile and even told them they could go to the park. The younger three quickly ran off to the park. "T" started to cry because he wanted to continue to help. I wish I had an attitude like that!

I guess my whole point is that we need to make sure we are treating others the way we would like to be treated. We should be helping others, especially in times like these. It is sometimes so easy to get focused on our lives that we forget about others and the difficulties they may be facing!