Do Not Judge by Ann Elaine Broughton

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged” (Matt. 7:1 NIV).

My mother was a very wise woman. When I was young I would have little fights with my friends. My mother would always tell me that there was a reason they were acting the way they were, and I shouldn’t point at them and call them names. She would say, “When you point at someone and make fun of them there is one finger pointing at them, but four pointing back at you.”  Then she would say, “Did you do anything to make them angry?”  That was when I felt that little itch of guilt. Man, she knew how to make me squirm. Yep, I had called them a name first. “But that was because they had giggled about my new glasses,” I told her. Mom wouldn’t let up on me. She said I had to forgive them and kill them with kindness. Plus, I had to stop calling them names. I thought she was goofy, as any little girl would, but I tried it anyway and by golly, it threw them for a loop. They didn’t expect for me to be nice to them. It was hard because my feelings were really hurt, but my mom was right. They said they were sorry, and I tried to behave and not call them names anymore.
You see some things never change. As children we judge others and as adults we can be caught up in judging others also. But, as we see from the above verse, we are not to judge others because Jesus will judge us. Sometimes it is very easy to look at others and see how they are falling short in their Christian walk, but instead of judging we should take the time to mentor them so that their walk will be closer to the walk of Christ. We all make mistakes and none of us are perfect, so it is best to concentrate on our walk and how we can improve our relationship with Christ rather than pointing our fingers at others and judging them.
This week when you are tempted to judge someone, stop and think how you are measuring up with the Lord. Is your life a reflection of Christ’s love? Do you encourage others and find positive things to say that build them up? Have you given something to someone in need? Do you have a servant’s heart? These are lots of things to consider and pray about. May you fix you eyes on  Jesus’ life and His sacrifice so that you can live a life in accordance to His will.
Dear Lord,
It is tremendously easy to point fingers and judge others when we should take stock of our own lives and how we measure up to your standards. Stop us from talking behind other people’s backs and instead help us to show your love for them. Help us to treat others as we would want to be treated.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen