Understanding

Do we think that we really love and understand others? I know that at times I really do not. I really do not show compassion when I really need to be showing compassion. Jesus taught us that we should be so filled with the love of God that we would not judge.

"Don't pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults— unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It's easy to see a smudge on your neighbor's face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, 'Let me wash your face for you,' when your own face is distorted by contempt? It's this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor."

Matthew 7:1-3 (The Message)

You want to be happy? Well your, my, happiness depends a great deal on our willingness to understand others and do our best not to judge. Most of us can easily talk about another person's bad qualities, their wickedness, the things that we think we would never do. We can do this for hours and thrive in it and leave that discussion feeling good about ourselves. It is amazing that we can do this for hours at a time, but avoid our faults, wickedness and bad qualities at any cost. Any mention of them causes us to become angry and we begin to think and say things like "how dare they!"

So next time you or I are tempted to talk about the faults of others do this: immediately begin to talk loudly about your own mental and moral shortcomings for the next five minutes and see how you like it. If we do not like to talk about our own faults and it hurts us to do so, we certainly should feel more hurt when saying unkind and harmful things about other people. So train yourself, and eveyr member of your family, to refrain from talking about others.

We do not help others by talking about their faults in public, we only hurt them more. We shame them and they give up trying. You know it because we have all been there! When someone is down they are all too aware of their fault and the reasons they are there. We should pull them out with loving and kind words. So today silently heal yourself of the desire to criticize and judge. This will teach others to be better by your example of a emphathic heart.

Namaste'