It’s a small comment in the book of Acts. It’s easy to skip over it or not give it much thought. Yet God has often brought it to my attention. In Acts 10, Peter has been shown the importance of sharing the hope of Christ with Gentiles…way out of his comfort zone… and specifically to Cornelius. And as Peter talked with this Gentile Roman soldier, he said this:

And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

Acts 10:38 NLT

Buried in that declaration of who Jesus is came the little phrase saying Jesus went about “doing good.” Yes, He healed. Yes, He cast out demons. And Yes, He raised some from the dead. But it seems Peter is saying that as Jesus went, taught, and healed, He just did good things that were before Him.

Mentor and leadership guru Fred Smith also noted this interesting phrase. He told a group he was mentoring that Christ didn’t go about doing good just when He felt like it. It was the pattern of His life. And Smith made another interesting point:

“Christ did not go about looking for the “highest good.” He just did the good that was at hand. It is easy to become immobilized looking for the highest good because we tend to ignore the small bits all around us. What is small! We cannot measure the quality or quantity of good.”

The Bible talks of a word fitly spoken (Proverbs 25:11). Solomon says those timely words are like apples of gold in a silver bowl. Priceless to the one receiving them. Doing good may be speaking that word of encouragement to someone on your staff. It could be as simple as a smile and a greeting to someone who cleans your facilities. And it could be lending a helping hand when you see the need.

Judy and I try to always greet the security people and the cleaning crew at our church. It’s a simple thing, but through that we are acknowledging they are valuable people…people who Jesus loves and died for.

Let me challenge you (and myself) to look for something today you can do. Something right before you as you go through your tasks. Something small. Fred Smith set that goal for himself, too.

“I challenge myself each morning to see what’s around me and ask for the discernment to respond rightly. I don’t go out to be a “do-gooder,” but instead to see what is in front of me and do good.”

Let’s follow the pattern Jesus set. Let’s go about doing good.

God’s best…