In the summer before 8th grade, I made friends with a guy named Larry. He was new to town, so I encouraged him to go out for our school football team. It was a good news/bad news scenario. The good news? He made the cut. The bad news? He won my position. I tried to be happy for him, but it was tough.
A few weeks into the season Larry fell and broke a finger. I remember the day he stood at my front door holding up his bandaged hand. “Looks like you’re going to have to play.” The passage Paul wrote was a lot easier for him to write than it was for me to practice. “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep” (Romans 12:15). If you want to plumb the depths of your respect and love for someone, answer this question: How do you feel when that person succeeds and how do you feel when they struggle?
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