I was rummaging through some boxes in my garage a few days ago and I came across a bracelet with the letters W.W.J.D. on it. Now if you are of the Christian faith, you know what that means – What Would Jesus Do. Several years ago, that style of bracelet was extremely popular. It seemed like everyone wore one on their wrist. Teachers, preachers, professional athletes, high school kids, bankers, lawyers, mechanics. It didn’t really matter what one did for a living; it was a simple way to express one’s faith.

What would Jesus do? I guess the answer to that question falls on the one wearing the bracelet.

I am not a biblical scholar, so don’t assume I know what I am talking about. But I do believe this; the answer to that question should not be that difficult.

It can be mind boggling listening to people offer their opinions on what Jesus would do. How he would respond to this or that, what he would or would not support, for whom he would vote. But does anyone really know for sure? I don’t.

I don’t want to discourage you, but as I have grown older, I have unlearned many of the things I was taught about what Jesus would do. It seems like I have carved away ninety-five percent of what I thought was right, and today I focus on the five percent of what I know for sure.

Love your neighbor as yourself.

I recently heard a story about Billy Graham. Former President Bill Clinton was being honored at a banquet as one of Time Magazine’s People of the Year. President Clinton invited Billy Graham to attend and sit at his table. It was smack dab in the middle of the Monica Lewinsky scandal and Billy Graham shared that he caught a great deal of grief from other believers for sitting with the President.

Billy Graham’s answer: “God’s job is to judge, the holy spirit’s job is to convict, and Jesus’s job is to love. We are called to be like Jesus, and some people try to do all three.”

I do wonder if Jesus were physically walking the earth today, what church would he attend? Would he slip into the back pew of a small country church? Or would he attend a mega church with all the bells and whistles?

What kind of car would he drive? Would he fly in a private jet? Own a mansion on a hill? Would he root for the Dallas Cowboys? Would he even make his way to America? Would he carry an iPhone or wear an apple watch?

I have a hard time seeing Jesus telling his followers two thousand years ago to “fear not, for someday there will be an app for that.”

There is a line in the movie Shawshank Redemption where a convict named Brooks is released from prison after spending decades behind bars. In a letter he sent back to his friends still in prison, he wrote, “The world went and got itself in a big damn hurry.”

I think, at least for me, that even though I am living my life with urgency because I am in the fourth quarter, there are some things I need to slow down for, and not be in such a big hurry.

Slow to criticize, slow to anger, slow to speak, slow to assume.

On the other side of the coin. – Hurry to encourage, hurry to forgive, hurry to listen, hurry to support.

My faith is important to me, and I want to slow it down, keep it simple, and learn exactly what I need to speed up for, and what to slow down for.

What would Jesus do? Well, we may not completely agree on that. But I think we can agree that Billy Graham did exactly what Jesus would have done.

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Todd Howey is a columnist for BrownwoodNews.com whose articles appear on Fridays. Email comments to [email protected].