Lesson from Gunsmoke

 

I was watching Gunsmoke the other day and the story was about an old man and his grandson.  They had ridden into Dodge City, Kansas to take delivery of a Hereford bull that had been shipped in by train from the Chicago stockyards.  The old man went into the Long Branch saloon and encountered Miss Kitty.  Being mannerly, he took off his hat and politely greeted Miss Kitty.  I chuckled because his hair was sticking out on all sides having been tousled by his cowboy hat.  But then I thought a bit.  I went into the bathroom, took off my hat, looked into the mirror, and … yup!  You guessed it.  My hair was sticking up just like the hair on the old man in the program.  Hey, often we see the problem in other people, but we fail to see the problem in us!  Matthew 7:3, “And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?”  Well said, Jesus!  And the Lord went on to tell us what to do in Matthew 7:5, “Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.”  So, here it is: first look in the mirror, comb your own hair, and then comb the hair for the other old man.  And I know because I’m an old man.  Oh, yes, I am!