DAILY TEXT for today Friday, December 20, 2024, I call you friends (John 15:15).

DAILY TEXT, From today Friday, December 20, 2024, I call you friends (John 15:15).

Let us examine the scriptures every day 2024

Friday December 20, 2024

I call them friends (John 15:15).

Jesus trusted his disciples despite their failures (John 15:16). When James and John asked for a position of honor in the Kingdom, Jesus did not question why they served Jehovah or tell them that they would no longer be his apostles. (Mark 10:35-40) And, on the night he was arrested, all his disciples abandoned him (Matt. 26:56). But Jesus never lost faith in them. Although he knew their flaws, “he loved them to the end” (John 13:1). And after he was resurrected, he even charged his 11 faithful apostles with the great responsibility of directing the work of making disciples and caring for his valuable sheep (Matt. 28:19, 20; John 21:15-17). And he was not wrong to trust these imperfect men. They were all faithful until the end of their life on Earth. Jesus trusted imperfect human beings. Their good example encourages us to do the same. w22.09 6 para. 12.

HOW TO RECOVER LOST TRUST

Why might we find it difficult to trust others?

Have we discussed something confidential with a brother and then found out that he has told others? The truth is that it is terrible when someone betrays our trust. A sister once told an elderly man something private. It turns out that the next day the old man's wife called her to cheer her up, obviously because her husband talked too much. As is normal, the trust that the sister had in that old man suffered. But the sister acted well and asked for help. She talked to another elder, and he helped her regain trust in elders.

What helped a brother regain lost confidence?

For a long time, a brother was very upset with two elderly people who for him were not trustworthy. But then he remembered a short but powerful phrase that a brother whom he greatly respected said: “Our enemy is Satan, not our brothers.” The brother thought about those words, and prayed about the matter. Over time, he managed to make peace with the two elders.

Why can it take time to regain trust? Take the example of Grete.

Have you ever lost a responsibility in the congregation? It can be very painful. Let's look at the case of Grete and her mother, two sisters who were loyal to Jehovah during the 1930s. They lived in Germany, where the Nazi government had banned our work. Grete had been assigned to help make copies of The Watchtower for the brothers. But then the brothers learned that Grete's father was against the truth. They were so afraid that he might betray the congregation that they took that responsibility away from Grete. But Grete had to face other tests. During the Second World War, out of mistrust, they did not even give her and her mother copies of the magazines or greet them when they saw them on the street. How painful! That hurt Grete's feelings deeply, and it took her a long time to forgive those brothers and trust them again. Over the years, she came to the conclusion that Jehovah had forgiven them, so she understood that she had to do the same.

Why should we strive to overcome mistrust?

If you have gone through a painful experience similar to those we have mentioned, work to trust the brothers again. It may take time, but your effort will be worth it. Let's think about an example. If we become poisoned by a food, we will be more careful with what we eat, but that will not mean we will stop eating. Similarly, let us not let a bad experience make us distrust all our brothers, who as we know are imperfect. If we regain trust in them, we will be happier and we will focus on what we can do so that there is an atmosphere of trust in the congregation.

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