You Can Do It

 I can do everything through him who gives me strength. ~Philippians 4:13

Sometimes in life we come across people who push our every nerve. We want do whatever it takes to get away from these people. Sometimes we just want to be mean to them.
BUT God tells us to love these people.

One time, early in His earthly ministry, Jesus came upon a man named Levi. Levi was a tax collector. In those days it was the tax collector himself that decided the fees that they would charge. Most tax collectors at the time charged  people 100% increase or more on their taxes, sometimes as much as a 400% increase.

To say the least, this didn't endear them to the people. Yet, when Jesus sees Levi, He doesn't yell out rude comments, He doesn't ignore Levi, He simply calls out, "Follow Me."  Jesus saw the man Levi could be in Christ and not just the man sitting at the table.

Later that day we find Jesus at Levi's home having a meal. The religious leaders are complaining because a good and godly man wouldn't be around 'these kind' of people.

 "On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” ~Mark 2:17

How can I have this kind of attitude toward those that society calls unlovable? What if we could learn to love the worst that mankind has to offer? I'm not saying we should accept sin or say sin is okay, but rather embrace the sinner as a fellow image bearer of God who desperately needs the grace and mercy of the cross. (Just like you and me.)

I can do this. And so can you. Through Jesus we can have the strength to love the unlovable, touch the untouchable, reach the unreachable. I can do ALL THINGS through HIM. Will you give Jesus control today?