1. What if all of our determination to win arguments was used to win souls?
2. What if we fought our own pride with the same intensity that we fight those who offend us?
3. What if we spent as much time praying for our enemies as we spend talking about them?
4. What if our greatest ambition was not to be right, but to become like Christ?
5. What if every insult became an opportunity to display the character of Jesus?
6. What if we sought to understand the hearts of others before seeking to expose their faults?
7. What if all the energy we invest in defending ourselves was invested in denying ourselves?
8. What if we feared grieving God more than we feared losing the approval of men?
9. What if we became as determined to forgive as we have been to rehearse?
10. What if we measured success by the number of people we helped toward Christ instead of the number of people who agreed with us?
11. What if we carried our crosses as faithfully as we carry our opinions?
12. What if every criticism we received became another reason to bless those who spoke it?
13. What if our first response to hostility was compassion instead of retaliation?
14. What if we were more troubled by our own sins than by the sins of those around us?
15. What if we wept over "sinners" more often than we complained about them?
16. What if we pursued holiness with the same persistence that we pursue comfort?
17. What if we invested as much effort into becoming peacemakers as we do into proving our point?
18. What if we loved those who opposed us with even more determination than they used to oppose us?
19. What if the strength we use to overcome our adversaries was used to bear their burdens?
20. What if our greatest victory was not conquering our enemies, but seeing them become our brothers and sisters in Christ?
21. What if all our effort to defeat our enemies was used to redeem them?
What would this actually look like? What is the very first image that comes to your mind? Is it Jesus?
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“Reason dictates that persons who are truly noble and who love wisdom will honor and love only what is true. They will refuse to follow traditional viewpoints if those viewpoints are worthless...Instead, a person who genuinely loves truth must choose to do and speak what is true, even if he is threatened with death...I have not come to flatter you by this written petition, nor to impress you by my words. I have come to simply beg that you do not pass judgment until you have made an accurate and thorough investigation. Your investigation must be free of prejudice, hearsay, and any desire to please the superstitious crowds. As for us, we are convinced that you can inflict no lasting evil on us. We can only do it to ourselves by proving to be wicked people. You can kill us—but you cannot harm us.” From Justin Martyr's first apology 150 A.D. Martyred A.D. 160