Key Bible Verse: Then Peter relied, "I see very clearly that God doesn't show partiality" (Acts 10:34). Bonus Reading: James 2:1-4, 8-9

During a student's second month of night school, the professor gave a pop quiz. The conscientious student breezed through the questions until the last one: What is the first name of the woman who cleans this building?

Surely this was some kind of joke. He'd seen the cleaning woman several times. She was tall, brunette, and in her 50s, but how would he know her name? He handed in the paper, leaving the question blank. Before class ended another student asked if the last question would count.

"Absolutely," the professor answered. "In your lives, in your careers, you'll meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say hello."

The professor communicated a powerful truth. It's easy to overlook people and fail to see their worth. The world tends to judge worth based on wealth, appearance, and status. In the corporate environment, such prejudice often forms a "glass ceiling" that bars qualified people from top positions.

How radically different is the kingdom of God where God places great worth on every person, where "the last will be first, and where the first will be last (Matthew 20:16), and the greatest are those who serve others (Mark 9:35).

—Don Beehler in HomeLife

My Response: Who is one person whose name I should learn?

Thought to Apply: If this is God's world, there are no unimportant people.—GEORGE THOMAS

Adapted from HomeLife (8/03) by permission.

Prayer for the Week

Teach me, Lord, to respond to the people you thrust into my life in ways that mature me, honor You, and build Your kingdom.

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