Three longtime friends were fishing together, growing bored after hours without a bite.

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“I’ve got an idea,” said the first. “Let’s confess our worst sins. I’ll start—I struggle with lust. I’ve been cheating on my wife for over a year.”

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The second man said, “Mine is greed. I’ve been embezzling money from my company for years.”

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The third man said, “My sin is gossip. And I can’t wait to get home!”

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Scripture sums up the law in one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If we keep tearing each other down, we’ll destroy one another.

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True love for Jesus is shown not by words, but by how we treat each other. If we constantly criticize and belittle, the world sees no reason to follow Christ. Jesus made it simple: “Love one another, and the world will know.”

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People recognize real love instantly—and they can spot a fake just as fast.

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If you truly love God, you will naturally love others. Saying you love God while refusing to love your neighbor—especially someone sitting next to you in church—is a contradiction.

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Love isn’t just a choice; it moves us to act. God’s love lives in us, and if loving others doesn’t come naturally, it’s time to examine your relationship with Him.

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Miss Thompson, a schoolteacher, told her class each year, “I love you all the same.” But she didn’t mean it—especially when it came to Teddy Stallard. He was withdrawn, messy, and unmotivated. She took a cruel satisfaction in marking his papers with failing grades.

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Yet Teddy’s school records told a deeper story:

• 1st Grade: Shows promise, but has a troubled home.

• 2nd Grade: Mother is seriously ill.

• 3rd Grade: Mother died. Teddy is a slow learner.

• 4th Grade: Father is uninvolved.

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At Christmas, Teddy gave Miss Thompson a gift: a broken rhinestone bracelet and a half-used bottle of cheap perfume. The class laughed, but she silenced them, wore the bracelet, and dabbed on the perfume.

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After class, Teddy lingered and said, “You smell just like my mom. Her bracelet looks pretty on you.”

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Miss Thompson was changed. She asked God for forgiveness and returned to school a new teacher—one who loved her students, especially Teddy. By year’s end, Teddy had caught up academically.

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Years later, she received notes from Teddy:

• High school: “I’m graduating second in my class.”

• College: “I’m graduating first.”

• Medical school: “I’m now Dr. Theodore Stallard.”

 

He invited her to his wedding, asking her to sit where his mother would have. She went—because she had loved him when he needed it most.

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To stop tearing each other down, we must clothe ourselves in humility. It’s not natural—it’s a daily choice. Humility isn’t just talk; it’s action. It means loving the difficult people: the arrogant athlete, the smelly kid, the one who’s hard to like.

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Don’t say you love—show it. Love is lived, not spoken. When you walk in humility, you won’t gossip or belittle others, because you value them above yourself.

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1 Peter 5:5 says: “Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

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There’s a story of Joe, a former drunk who was transformed at a New Orleans mission. Once hopeless, Joe became the most selfless man there—cleaning messes, feeding the weak, and caring for others with joy.

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One night, a broken man came to the altar, crying, “God, make me like Joe! Make me like Joe!”

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The mission director gently said, “Son, it’s better to pray, ‘Make me like Jesus.’”

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The man looked up and asked, “Is He like Joe?”