Cut it Out

  Christ taught many things that were hard for people to understand. For example he taught that the people needed to eat his flesh and drink his blood in order to be saved. I am going to focus on a similar teaching that also is not meant to be taken too literally like the previous example. 

   During Christ's sermon on the mount he taught: "And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out...And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell." (Mathew 5:29-30 ) The first time reading this I seriously thought of people cutting off their hands and plucking out their eyes. Luckily for us, and our eyes and our hands, that isn't exactly what Christ is teaching. Just as his teachings were hard to understand they were often hard to apply. In this case Jesus is teaching us to forsake anything that is "taken in" by the eye that prevents us from being closer to God. An example of this would be pornography or something even nearer to each of us, a favorite Netflix show in which we might waste countless hours idly watching it instead of reading from the scriptures. Whereas with our hands maybe there is a certain habit that is taking away from time that could be spending giving a helping hand. An example of this could include video games and spending several hours on our cell phones on social media rather than going out and giving service. In each of the examples given Christ is telling us to "pluck out" our favorite show and to "cut off" the time wasted on our cell phone. Of course I am generalizing, but I know we each have our "guilty pleasures" that take up our valuable time. Even though it may be hard to cut out certain activities, setting a goal to do so can make you happier. I know that as I embark on more profitable activities I feel more accomplished and satisfied with my own life.