My daughter's and I have been watching (I should say re-watching) the lord of the
Rings.
There is a scene in the Fellowship of the Rings that has such truth that I thought I would leave a link. It's a conversation between Gandalf and frodo.
And it is the essence of What Jesus said about desiring Mercy, not sacrifice.
When you are young it is easy to have a hard heart and a judgmental attitude.
When you are young, failure is weakness.
When you are young, you are very, very certain of what is right and what is wrong.
There is no grey, only black and white.
Now I am not saying there isn't a right and a wrong.
But what I am saying is what Gandalf said...
Do not be quick to hand out death and judgement.
I used to to be very judgemental.
I could not understand how someone could do this or that.
I could not comprehend how people slide into certain situations.
I was determined to live deliberately.
And I have.
But what I failed to take into account
when I was younger, was that not everyone is coming at this from my perspective.
My opinions of another person rose and fell on their adherence to my particular code of morality.
I cringe to even write that.
I didn't say it out loud. But I said it through my body language.
My lack of support.
My silence.
Over the years I have learned something.
Just because someone chooses a life or a lifestyle that is outside my particular moral code....
It doesn't have a thing to do with me.
I don't believe God wants me to go around telling other people what they should or should not do.
That's between that person and God.
If I am a friend.
I support and love that person.
If they do something harmful, yes..you step in.
But if it harms no one.
If it is a personal lifestyle choice.
He desires Mercy from his children.
and understanding.
Not condemnation or judgement.
The world has enough accusers.
Satan being the main accuser.
It won't be Chris on the judgement seat.
Not in heaven and not down here.
Having lived long enough to truly screw the pooch on multiple occasions has taught me a great many things.
First among them,
There but for the Grace of God, go I.
This is Saturday, isn't it?
ahhhh, how funny.
Hugs,
Chris
13 comments:
Great message Chris and I am in full agreement.
I love Lord of the Rings. There is great truth in it. It's funny, I haven't watched it in years, but it has been crossing my mind lately. It may just be time for a rewatch.
As far as judging goes, it is a fine line. I think there are moral absolutes. God says there are--we have the right to disagree, but that doesn't make us right.
And I think we are to determine what is right and what is wrong--and then we are to have mercy. I am required to give as I have received, and I've received boundless mercy and grace.
"For He has shown thee, oh man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy and walk humbly with thy God." Micah 6:8
Deb
Huh, who thought to screw the pooch could be turned intoa positive, nice!
Judging is a habit we could all do with out....
Great insight, as usual!
Well said.
I like to think that I'm miss Non-Judgemental because of all the stupid crap I've done in my lifetime, but it's a lie of course. I'm judgemental, especially in some matters with family members.
I've come to realize that all judgements are acting out of insecurities - I have to elevate myself by looking down at something else and in that light it's all character flaws that I can't afford.
Thanks for reminding me of that, and on my sabbath!
This is a lesson I have learned over the last few years too. I also tend to lean toward being very judgmental. Then I realized how much I need to improve on. Sure, others may not live up to my code of ethics, but I find things I need to improve on all the time. There are lots of things defined in the Bible as wrong or bad, and guess what? There are some I am still working on. (i.e., Proverbs 23:2 “Put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony.”). This could turn into a great conversation over coffee. Unfortunately, we aren't talking over coffee, so I'll just follow Ecclesiastes 5:2 "therefore let your words be few." :-)
Have a great day Chris!
South Beach Steve
Hi Chris, I am really trying not to judge. It's been a downfall for me. Thank you for the reminder! Hugs!
We recently watched the whole LOTR series again - it's so good!
Chris, I wish more Christians were like you!
I am sure that there are all kinds of reasons that we tell ourselves that we judge others. I think it boils down to making us feel better about ourselves. I am sure that you said that in there somewhere. It was all very enlightening. But, I think you nailed it when you said that so long as what someone else was doing wasn't hurting you or your family, then it wasn't your concern. It's between them and God. In other words, there is a time to judge. If someone is doing something that is ripping your life apart, don't just stand idle because you've decided not to judge. Know where your lines are. I think that might be the biggest problem is that people don't know where to draw the line. As always, very thought provoking.
Words to live by! Great message, Chris.
I suppose if there is any good that has come out of being fat all my life, it's that I KNOW what it f eels like to on the receiving end of harsh judgement, and all due to outer appearances.
That's not to say I never struggle with judging... I catch myself too often. But I am learning to appreciate the PERSON, even though we might not be identical in our beliefs. It's nice.
I appreciated this thoughtful post. I can ALWAYS use this kind of reminder. :-)
Loretta
=^..^=
PS: I just cracked myself up! I was about to hit publish, then I remembered that when I first "met" you I would judge you for your... um... at times salty language. What a prude I was! Then I got to "know" you more, and now it's just funny. Go figure. I'm glad I changed, not you. :-)
Okay, aside from being a great post that made me think . . . you also used the term screw the pooch. And for that, I thank you. I'm going to see how many times I can work it into conversation this week.
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