According to Jesus, it's a bad idea to major in "speckology" while suffering from "plankitis." During His Sermon on the Mount, our Lord said, "Why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?" (Matthew 7:3).

If speckology were listed in a university catalog, the course description might read: "The identifying and criticizing of small shortcomings in the lives of everyone around you. Very popular course; fills early."

Should plankitis appear in a medical dictionary, it might be identified this way: "A disease that distorts self-perception and renders an individual incapable of recognizing personal faults. Occurs worldwide."

According to our Lord, the solution is to "remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye" (v.5).

It doesn't take a carpenter or an ophthalmologist to understand this metaphor of Jesus. We've all enrolled in the course while suffering from the disease. But today, if we would shift our focus from the specks we see in others to the planks in our own eyes, what a difference it would make for us all!   — David C. McCasland