Matthew 7:12 (ESV)
The Golden Rule12 “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
I am not perfect, not even close. I do not always respond in love as I so want to. That being said I DO purpose myself to try and imagine everyone has a good intent at heart. I purpose myself to realize there is more to each person than what meets the eye and to follow
Matthew 7:1
“Judge not, that you be not judged."
By doing this I have become very compassionate toward most people. The person who is rude to me I easily forgive because I believe it is not their intention to be rude, it is more like an external symptom of whatever they are going through internally. If a parent sees one of their children's faces appearing painful they will naturally respond with compassion and want to know what is wrong so they can comfort them. The way I see rude people is as a person in pain and I am USUALLY moved with compassion to pray for them in the Spirit so they "feel" better.
I say usually because I am not Jesus, I react in flesh more often then I would like to admit. I can say that I am often convicted of my actions and I repent and grow. That being said I have noticed recently that with this world moving so fast, many people have failed to notice they are NOT the ONLY person going through something. Some people keep quiet about pain in their lives, others are more vocal. Just because someone appears to have it all together doesn't mean they do. Just because someone seems to have it all doesn't mean they do. No matter how much we THINK we know about someone, there is always more we do not know. This is why ONLY God can judge.
A couple days ago I stood in a clinic at the lab waiting for some supplies I was sent to get. My turn comes and I smile at the woman behind the desk and I step forward with my toddler and my baby(in my arms). She is complaining to a co-worker then looks up at me and in a rude tone lets me know it will be a few before she gets to me because she had to do something on her computer. I was tempted to become angry at her for being rude to me, after all I was the patient and she was paid to be nice. Instead I thought about how her day must have been going for her to respond that way. I thought about how many things could be going on in her life beside what I saw in my few minutes of interacting with her. I then thought how great it would be if we all thought like that. If she had given me the same courtesy she may have had compassion on the fact that I am holding roughly 35 plus pounds while being pulled and twisted by another 35 pounds....and one of my children was noticeably ill and maybe she could have responded in a better tone and more sympathetic to my having to wait as she struggled along. But that was not the case, so I granted grace to her and went about my business.
I have typed this blog twice and this is the third time now. Each time at this spot, I start typing about my drama, it seems I am lost in the drama and it is not about the drama, it is about how much each person may struggle and how much each of us MAY be under attack from the enemy and how no matter what NO one deserves our attitude raining on their day. That being said this line was typed the day after I wrote this blog, I did not sense last night was the right time to post it and if I sense God is wanting me to wait, I will wait. The "drama" post will follow this post...not to vent my drama, but to cover what I am learning through the drama.
Matthew6:34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
So we are told each day has enough trouble...it doesn't say this person or that person will have enough trouble each day. It is not specific. No matter how preceptive we are, unless God speaks to us we do not KNOW what another person is going through, even if they share a portion with us, we do not know if they shared every detail. We need to leave the judgment to God and step away from assumption and get the focus off other people's potential issues and back on to our own areas which need growth.
Daily I have to tell my 10 yr old to leave his 3 yr old sister alone, he is not her parent and that he needs to focus on himself and not mess with her unless she is about to harm herself. I then think " Wow that is great life advice for a lot of us!" I notice that when I redirect him back to himself he is more engaged in being a part of the family as a whole and he can carry on a conversation with me. If I allow him to wander off into his sisters business he becomes irate because he cannot control her. How many people do we know...maybe even ourselves, who seem to become irate when they are assuming what a person may be doing, thinking, feeling etc.? What kind of GOOD could each of us do if we just let people be? What if we did this...
But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,? What if we realized most of our "enemies" are assumed and not actual? What if we realized many people we think hate us...actually think we hate them?
WHAT IF WE LET GOD BE GOD AND WE JUST WENT THROUGH THIS LIFE TRYING TO DO HIS WILL FOR OUR LIVES AND LIVED OUR LIVES BY HIS WORD?
Dear Lord I pray that I and everyone who needs to have a heart of grace and compassion, be filled with Your grace toward others and with Your compassion. Help us to see others through Your eyes. May we let Your light shine bright through us, possess and react in the fruits of the Spirit. In Jesus name, Amen.
Matthew 5
Salt and Light
13 “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet.14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light
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