Love x Judgement

A growing part of my spiritual journey with the Lord has been embracing His heart for loving people. Naturally, I am disapproving and over critical towards others. Judgement and fault-finding are an innate part of me that has me leaving most social interactions resigned and irritated. It’s not something I actively chose to be, but it is a default way of thinking- so easily able to identify the shortcomings in others, while minimizing the faults in myself.

The more I have accepted the gentle grace of God the more I can feel those tendencies melting away. The Word makes clear the emphasis Jesus had on serving the lowliest of people; the weak, the poor, the sick and the sinner. There is such an emphasis on reaching those who were outcast. The unwashed, untouchable underbelly of society. Not only does Jesus lovingly encounter those people, but he actively pursues them. He chases them down with the adamant conviction that His love will reach every lost soul and heal every heart.

Can I live with the same conviction? Lord, I pray for the same assurance in me. That I do not run from, but towards, those that need love the most. That in the moments of frustration, where my patience is being worn down by others, that I be filled with your spirit of compassion. The same spirit that reminds me that every human is your masterpiece - your skillfully crafted creation - and no matter their faults, they are unconditionally and wholeheartedly loved by you. Give me your strength to rise above the worldly emotions that resign me to the shortcomings of others, and grant me the wisdom to show them that same grace that you have offered me.