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“People tend to be too choosy about who they help and who they encourage.”

A thought by John C. Maxwell (2017-03-07) from his book, Encouragement Changes Everything: Bless and Be Blessed (Kindle Location 487). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

I get that.  It is so easy to be so choosy, isn’t it?

John says, “People tend to be too choosy about who they help and who they encourage. They look for people like themselves. And some people even believe that they should help only individuals who believe what they believe and think as they do. That’s not the way it should be.”

He goes on, “Years ago I came across a piece about someone who fell into a pit and couldn’t get out—and how others treated that person:

 “A subjective person came along and said, ‘I feel for you down there.’
An objective person came along and said, ‘Well, it’s logical that someone would fall down there.’
A Pharisee said, ‘Only bad people fall into pits.’
A mathematician calculated how the individual fell into the pit.
A news reporter wanted an exclusive story on the person in the pit.
A fundamentalist said, ‘You deserve your pit.’
A Calvinist said, ‘If you’d been saved, you’d never fallen in that pit.’
An Armenian said, “You were saved and still fell in that pit.’
A charismatic said, ‘Just confess that you’re not in that pit.’
A realist came along and said; ‘Now that’s a pit.’
A geologist told him to appreciate the rock strata in the pit.
An IRS worker asked if he was paying taxes on this pit.
The county inspector asked if he had a permit to dig the pit.
A self–pitying person said, ‘You haven’t seen anything until you’ve seen my pit.’
An optimist said, ‘Things could be worse.’
A pessimist said, ‘Things will get worse.’
Jesus, seeing the man, reached down and took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit.”

John then said, “We should always keep in mind that God loves everybody, and to treat others the way Jesus would treat them. Do that and others will always feel encouraged.

I am so glad God loves me.  And I’m so glad he loves you.  And I don’t want to be so choosy in who to help and who to encourage.  And I hope you won’t be either.  OK?
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