"I have been thinking that a worthy goal for the new year might be to start facing our situations with a question made famous by Charles Sheldon more than 100 years ago in his book, "In His Steps". The book focuses on the pastor of a socially proper church who challenged his parishioners to pause before taking action in a given situation and ask the question, "What Would Jesus Do?" (known simply today as WWJD). The remainder of the book follows the main characters through their inspiring journey of faith as they developed the habit of following his suggestion.

I think such a practice would be a growing experience for any Believer.  We might ask, however, how do we know what Jesus would do?  Like most any of life's key questions, the answer can be found in the Bible.  The New Testament has many examples of what Jesus actually did, in real life situations. For example, Luke 19 has the story of His meeting Zacchaeus, chief tax collector for the Roman Empire, traitor, and thief.  He was hated by the Jews and they would likely have stoned him. But what did Jesus do?  He directed His full attention toward Zacchaeus, called him by his name and then did the unthinkable. He went as a guest to his house, an act of genuine acceptance. This resulted in public repentance, and salvation of Zacchaeus household. Another example is found in the eighth chapter of John which gives the account of the woman taken in adultery; in the very act of adultery. The religious leaders wanted to stone her, according to the Law of Moses.  But Jesus rebuffed them as He publicly forgave her and set her free to "... go and sin no more."  Mark 10:46 tells the story of blind Bartemaeus. When he cried out to Jesus, the people rebuked him and told to be quiet (this was the last week before the crucifixion).  But Jesus said, "Call him"; He gave the man His full attention, determined what he wanted, and healed him.

When confronted with a new situation, we are ready to react. Naturally, our response is determined by our mood, our prejudices and past experiences, our emotional investment in the situation, etc. We usually don't stop to ponder the matter. That's all normal; it's part of our humanness. But we can't stop with normal. The Bible calls us to be renewed, to be transformed by the renewing of our minds; and like so many things, it happens a step at a time. One step might be to begin developing the habit of facing life with the question in our minds, "In this situation 'What would Jesus do'"?