First
be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Matthew
5:24
How far would you travel to put things right with a brother who hadn't spoken to you in 10
years? Would you go 300 miles from Iowa to Wisconsin? On a riding lawn mower?
Unable to drive a car and despising bus travel, Alvin Straight did exactly that in the
intriguing film The Straight Story. It is the true-life drama of a 73-year-old man
who decided it was time to end the silence, stop the hating, and break down the wall of
anger he and his brother had built between them.
As I watched the film in a packed theater, where the audience was silent from beginning to
end, I thought of all the broken relationships that must have surfaced in the minds of
people sitting there in the darkness. I also pondered the words of Jesus about setting
things right with those from whom we've been estranged. He said, "If you bring your
gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave
your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother,
and then come and offer your gift" (Matthew 5:23-24).
Is there a relative, a friend, or a brother in Christ with whom you need to make things
right? Then why not go straight to that person and do it today?
-DCM
Lord, let me feel the pain of a wounded soul
And seek to heal that wounded one I pray;
Yes, I would take the reconciling role,
And bring an end to pain and strife today.
-Hess
An offense against your neighbor builds a fence between you and God.