Hey, carpool crew. Welcome to Carpooling with Jesus. I'm Pastor Justin. Happy Monday. I hope you had a great weekend. Now, you know when you and your friend got into it a few days ago, And you've both been avoiding each other ever since, And you were both part of it, so why should you be the one to apologize first? So let's jump in with the one thing I want you to remember for the ride. Go first with I'm sorry. Listen to this from Matthew 5:24. Jesus says, "First go and be reconciled with your brother or sister, then come and offer your gift." So here's what's going on. Jesus is teaching a big crowd, and he describes somebody who is at the altar about to give a gift to God, and right then they remember that somebody has something against them. Jesus says to leave your gift right there. Go be reconciled first. Reconciled is a fancy way of saying make it right, then come back and give your gift. Look at the first word. Jesus doesn't say, "Wait until they come to you." He doesn't say, "Wait until it's fair." He doesn't say, "Figure out who started it." He says, "Go first and go before you do anything else." That tells you something about what matters to Jesus. Making things right with people isn't a side thing. It's not something you do when you have time. He says, "Make time." Put it ahead of even giving a gift to God. Before you do anything. Now, you might think, "Well, what does that mean for me?" Well, for your parents it means before they do their tithe and offering at church or even before they do communion, they might stop and go fix whatever is going on, maybe with a friend or even with each other. For you it means before you sit and pray and give God thanks, maybe that's all you have to offer Him, you would stop and reach out to the friend that you hurt or that you're having an argument with. Maybe you have to wait till you see him tomorrow at school. That's okay. You can stop right there and write a little note that says, "I'm sorry." Let's not let this argument get in between of our friendship. And then put the note in an envelope and go back to saying your prayer before you go to sleep. Now, maybe it's a friend, maybe it's your brother, maybe it's a teammate or a kid at church, or your mom after you slam the door. We have some door slams in the Herman house. I know what that sounds like. So if that's you, if you're in a situation like that, stop, don't wait, don't reason why they should do it first. Go and fix. Go and reconcile. And don't forget the thing that I wanted you to remember for the ride. Go first with "I'm sorry." Remember, no matter where you are or how you're listening, God loves you. And parents, you probably know another family with two kids three days into not talking. Well, go ahead and share this episode with them. Sometimes the right conversation starts with a simple send. Now before you go, let's answer this question together. Who is somebody you have been waiting to go first with an "I'm sorry," and what would it take for you to stop what you're doing and go say "I'm sorry" first? I'll see you tomorrow on Carpooling With Jesus.
