From Living Faith Daily Catholic Devotions (April/May/June 2026)

St. Paulinus of Nola; Sts. John Fisher and Thomas More

2 Kings 17:5-8 + Psalm 60:3-5 + Matthew 7:1-5

Spiritual First Aid

…remove the wooden beam from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter from your brother’s eye. Matthew 7:5

I was helping my dad get something out of his eye when I thought of this saying of Jesus. There was nothing in my own eye, as far as I knew, but for the life of me, I couldn’t see what was causing Dad’s pain. And I wanted to help him!

That made me think. But Jesus doesn’t just say, examine yourself and leave the other guy alone, turning a blind eye to his fault. He tells us to get our lives straight – overcome our own blindness – why? So we can see clearly to help our brother get free from whatever it is that’s blinding him. that “splinter” we so wanted to judge is doing damage.

How can we approach another person – like I wanted to help my father – with loving aid, not condemnation?

Lord help me love others as you love me.

□ Sarah Christmyer