The Benefit of the Doubt
Jim Gillaspie
Did you ever jump to a hasty conclusion, only to find out that you
were wrong? Maybe you heard about the fellow named John who picked up
a hitchhiker one day on his way to work. After a while he noticed that
his wallet was missing, so he pulled the car over to the side of the
road and said to the young man he had picked up "give me that wallet
before I beat you to a pulp!" The young rider nervously handed him the
wallet. Then John barked: "Now get out of the car!" Again, the young
man quickly complied, and John drove off to work, muttering something
about what this world was coming to. That evening when John got home,
he couldn't wait to tell his wife about his experience with the
hitchhiker, but before he could say anything, his wife said: "Dear, did
you know that you left your wallet on the dresser today?"
Someone has
said that the only exercise many ever get is jumping to
conclusions. What if we began to give one another the benefit of the
doubt? Paul said love "believes all things" (1 Cor 13:7). The idea
is that love takes the kindest views of men's actions and
circumstances, and is ready to believe the best of every person. This
kind of love will eliminate the following expressions: "He did that
because..." or "She just said that because..." True love gives the
benefit of the doubt!