While I'm Thinking About It

Some things are clearly more important than others. That stated, and I assume accepted without argument, most of us should give more thought to the priority placement of the items we rank as important. Jesus rebuked a group of self-proclaimed "guides for the blind" (no really, the Pharisees actually called themselves that). He pointed out that "faith, justice, and mercy" should be considered more critical than tithing garden herbs and seeds (Matthew 23:23). Point made? Public perception is one of those items that doesn't belong on the top of the list, but it is a consideration. One of the qualifications of the church's special servants that were going to be "out front" in the community, was that they should have a good reputation among the town's people (1 Timothy 3:7). Their reputation clearly wasn't as important as the reality of who the servant really was. However, since believers no longer just wear their own names, but also wear the name of the Master, public perception is a consideration. The common ant