Will a Band-aid Do?

Imagine you are about to get in your car when you hear the harsh whisper
of a stranger demanding you to remain silent. Before you know what is happening your wallet has been stolen and four inches of sharp metal has been inserted into your flesh.
Blood is flowing from the wound.
The assailant flees.
You reach for your trusty first aid kit. You always knew it
would come in handy. Taking out a large band-aid, you place it on the
wound and drive home - satisfied that the wound is out of sight and on
the path to healing.

Preposterous, right? If you don't take care of that wound immediately
you are either going to die of blood loss, or eventually from an
infection. You have to deal with the wound. It is senseless not to...
But this is what we inherently condone when we try to change
the behaviors of people without focusing on their motivations. When we
look only at the actions and not the heart. When we try to fix our sin
problem without acknowledging that it's a heart problem. It's like
putting a Band-aid on a deep stab wound.

In Mark 7, Jesus alludes to the power of the heart when he declares,
"Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. Nothing outside a man can
make him 'unclean' by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a
man that makes him 'unclean.'" (Translation: Why are you focused on the
behavior and not the motivation?)

Seems like it's easy to identify the knife wounds in our kids' lives (the places where sin is infecting) but how can we focus less on the outside condition and more on the inward reality? Let's talk about it together!

~Jordan

P.S. Be sure to stop by Friday. Zap Zone has donated some free passes and we'll be giving them away here.