Mistakes
There is a story making the rounds on the internet. It has a lesson for us, especially those that claim to be disciples of Jesus….
One day a school teacher wrote on the board the following:
9×1=7
9×2=18
9×3=27
9×4=36
9×5=45
9×6=54
9×7=63
9×8=72
9×9=81
9×10=90
When she was done, she looked to the students and they were all laughing at her, because of the first equation which was wrong, and then the teacher said the following;
“I wrote that first one wrong on purpose, because I wanted you to learn something important. This was for you to know how the world out there will treat you. You can see that I wrote RIGHT nine times, but none of you congratulated me for it, but you all laughed and criticized me because of one wrong thing I did.”
So this is the lesson:
The world will never appreciate the good you do a million times, but will criticize the one wrong thing you do…
We all are quick to notice the mistakes of those around us—in school, in the workplace, in our churches. I ask myself, and you, how often do we see, acknowledge, or point out what those around us get right? We see the trash missed on the floor, the marks on the window, the typo in the church bulletin or newsletter, etc. We are quick to say something about it to everyone we can.
And yet, how clean are the floors really? How many windows are spotless and clean? Now much text is clearly and correctly typed? How much good has been accomplished – and not acknowledged?
In our world we will, see much that is right, and good, and true. And yet we get distracted by the small, insignificant errors. What if we chose, instead to lift up the good we see? What if we complemented all the work that is correct and ignore the typos?
What if we notice those who are missing from our fellowship and actually call them, write them, go see them and find out why they are absent from our fellowship? Wouldn’t that be more constructive and helpful?
Let’s affirm what is right, and good and let those little things fall to the side. After all, we all will make mistakes….