Rain in Lisbon

It had been raining hard for many days. Too many for the drainage system in downtown Lisbon, Portugal almost 20 years ago. I had left music school and was heading to the subway so I could go home. Since I had some time to spare (ha! time to spare! I must have been a teenager), I decided to go through downtown and just browse some of the stores. The rain had died down some, so I thought it would be nice to do some window shopping on my way home. The music school was up on a hill, but as I got close to the bottom I noticed the level of the water was a little higher than some of the stores in town. In fact, water was coming down the hills flooding parts of downtown as it headed for the river a little farther down. I stopped on a pedestrian only road and watched, somewhat amused, the workers of the stores armed with brooms, trying to push the water out of their shops. It was an interesting battle of brooms vs. water and the water was clearly winning. I thought it was no use trying to fight the fast water, but I confess I got a chuckle out of watching the people try.

That’s when I noticed that I had stopped right on top of a slightly elevated manhole right in the middle of the road, and all of a sudden I was surrounded by water everywhere!!! I had been so busy watching other people’s misfortune that I didn’t notice misfortune was also headed my way.

I took a few moments to assess the situation and then decided that I needed to get out of there as soon as possible. I was wearing boots, so I thought I would be ok, but the water was rising fast and soon it was higher than my boots and my feet got completely soaked. By the time I got to the subway station, it had been closed down due to the water flowing down the tunnels, so everyone had to use the bus system to get home. I was able to get on a bus that took me close to where my mom was waiting for me with the car. By the time I got in the car I was very wet, cold, and hungry. Miserable!

You know, the Bible says that we should worry about our problems more than we should worry about the problems of others. We should help each other out, but we shouldn’t try to remove other people’s faults when we most likely have bigger ones in our own lives to worry about.

But have you noticed how easy it is to notice other people’s flaws? Maybe is the way they dress, the music they listen to, or the food they eat. Maybe it’s their political views, the way they raise their children, or their use of time. Whatever it is, it’s so easy to notice other people’s faults.

And that’s when Jesus says, “You hypocrite!” Why hypocrite? Because we are condemning others when we are doing the same or even worse. “First remove the plank from your eye,” Jesus says. Wow! A plank? That’s pretty big, don’t you think? And I’m pretty sure my faults aren’t that big.

But actually, if we take this text to heart and examine ourselves, just the fact that we can so easily find faults in others is a sign that we do indeed have a plank of considerable size in our eyes. This is why Jesus counsels us to remove the plank out of our own eyes first. Now that’s no easy task, but as we read God’s word we find that Jesus is the one who removes it for us. And He does such a great job at it. And then, says the Bible, after the plank has been removed from our eyes, we will see clearly to remove the speck of dust from our brother’s eyes. And do you know what? I have a feeling that once we get that plank removed, we’ll realize that actually there was nothing wrong with our brother’s eyes! And even if the speck is still there or if it’s bigger than we thought, with the plank removed from our eyes by Jesus, our hearts will be so filled with God’s love that we will gently and lovingly lead our brother to Jesus, so Jesus can remove their speck of dust.

Now Portuguese shoes are very well made, or at least they used to be, and I still have those boots. Every time I wear them I am reminded of the lesson I learned that rainy afternoon in Lisbon. I was so busy watching the shop owners' problems that I didn’t realize my problem was actually bigger than theirs! I hope those boots last many more years, because this is a lesson I need to be reminded of often.

 http://placesiwishiwere.tumblr.com/post/166790267/lisbon-portugal-by-rui-palha

Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eyes and pain no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye."
Matthew 7:3-5

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
I John 1:9