Sermon Leftovers

I don't remember where I first heard it (a quick web search suggests it may date back as far as George Washington), but somewhere I picked up the idea that: Unasked for advice is heard as criticism. Even though I didn't ask for it, this was good advice. Who doesn't understand the pain of listening to someone give you unrequested (and sometimes unnecessary) advice. I remember a fellow once coming to "visit" with me only to leave an hour later having spent the entire time unpacking my many shortcomings. While some of his critiques may have been on target, our relationship and the setting certainly didn't merit such behavior. So I've really tried to take this idea to heart. I've worked hard to be someone who listens as people unpack their problems, but not to offer up my solutions unless asked for. Of course, the reverse of this is not true. I need to be careful to not ignore advice just because I didn't ask for it. In fact, Proverbs says:

Read and contemplate John 13. Jesus washed the disciples feet. Image courtesy of christianpost.com When Peter protested, Jesus explained that unless Peter's feet were washed, he could have no part with Jesus. We understand Jesus was teaching that we are made clean through His sacrificial and substitutionary death. However, like Peter and the disciples feet, our feet get dirty. We step in the dirt of life. We need to regularly take time to clean our feet so that they match the rest of our clean self. But here is what I think might be the toughest part of this passage to swallow. We are supposed to wash each other's feet! Consider this: If footwashing is a metaphor for cleansing ourselves from the daily dirt (read:SIN) that accumulates, then washing each other's feet means I am not the one responsible for washing the dirt of my feet, you are! Which means, I have to let you. Typically, we prefer to handle our own dirt. We want to take care of our own sin