Valerie and I were shocked beyond belief at the news video of a teenaged relative that thought it’d be a cool idea to teach his little 4 and 5 year old nephews to smoke drugs! As if that were not bad enough, he even had the nerve to videotape his actions and post the footage on the internet. Now that teenager is in jail, the children are in foster care, the mother is being ridiculed and those of us with a lick of sense are outraged!
You know it got me to thinking about the fact that we’re all teaching others something in our lives! Some, (and I believe this is most of us), are teaching good lessons to others by setting a good Christian example before them to see. But then there are others, knowingly and otherwise, that are teaching terrible and harmful lessons by the lives that they live! Some of the most severe criticism from the Lord came toward those who were supposed to be teachers of morality and religion among the Jews. Regarding those who teach others the wrong way in life, our Lord would say,
“…It is better that a millstone were hanged about his neck and he be cast into the sea, than that he should cause one of these little ones to stumble.” (Lk. 17:2)
Some of the best lessons I’ve learned in life haven’t come from classrooms or sermons; they’ve come from observing people set good examples before me. I’ve learned that hard work and dedication by watching the example of my father, I’ve learned perseverance and humility by watching Bro. Curtis Eubanks serve others even when he’s not feeling well himself. I’ve even learned a lot about style and grace by watching the good example of my wife! Some of the worse lessons have been learned by watching others too. The point is that we’re always teaching others and setting examples before them by the way that we live our lives.
Let me ask you today, what kind of example are you setting with your life? Right now there is somebody watching you and making decisions that will affect where they spend eternity based on your example. It’s important that we all make sure that we’re never the cause of someone else stumbling. I hope you’ll strive to set the right example starting today!
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