Do we care enough for others?
What is our motivation to care for others?
Do we only care for those we feel naturally drawn to?
What prevents us from caring for others?
I had a conversation to do with this yesterday with a friend I have known for pretty much my whole working life, since we met as graduates in our first job. I'm not sure she was even a Christian back then but over the last 12.5 years she has grown immensely in her faith and has spent a few years on mission.
The last few times we have caught up our conversation has turned to how we both recognise the importance of being refined by God on an ongoing basis. The basis of our faith is accepting that Jesus died for our sins and given us new life. It's also in this new life that we need to remember that we are still not perfect and God calls us to continually be refined or 'bear fruit'.
It's easy to feel that we ourselves are not cared for enough, but perhaps we need to look at how we ourselves care for others?
C brought up the importance of words. Words that you think you may say out of jest, may actually be hurtful or offensive to another person.
The words we use also affect us. You often hear people say 'you need to think more positively'. C and I talked about how if our words are not positive then what does that say about what is within us?
Matthew 12:33-35
'Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognised by its fruit. You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him.'
I was really encouraged that C has been praying and working through this refinement in her life.
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