We were traveling recently and saw many different people at the crowded airports. Some people had unique fashion sense, some had blue hair, some treated their dogs better than others treated their children. Paul repeated Jesus’ admonition when he told the Corinthian church, “So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view.” I admit, I have not really stopped evaluating. My heart went out to the grandma struggling to carry her grandbaby, while her rude daughter hurled insults at them both. Oops, I can’t even poke fun at the lady who bought her bulldog a seat next to her, in first class. Our society trains us to measure people by all kinds of false standards, and our human nature tends to follow right along. But Jesus says, “Judge not.” I know it, even as I cannot always live it.
I found myself praying for the grandma and her grandbaby, the children that were yanked by the arm and ordered to keep up, the frail or elderly who decided to risk travel to see a loved one. But I didn’t pray for the first class lady and her pampered dog, or the rude young mother. Forgive me, Father, for the battle in my brain that did not occur when I should have overcome my human point of view. And that’s why Jesus came. For our judgy times, the times we are mean, the times we dismiss others instead of supporting them. Jesus came not just to forgive us, but to give us a new way of life and the honored opportunity to be His ambassadors.Â
Airports remind me that the world is so much bigger than I see on a usual day. Shouldn’t I pray for everyone, not just those that fall on a certain side of my score sheet? (Oh, keeping score of sins…that’s a whole new topic we won’t touch today.) Today, I want to live the new life Jesus bought for me. God’s grace is for us as we repent, stop evaluating others and continue praying as Jesus would have us pray. Thank You, Jesus. ~Tracy