Something Worth Fighting For

Sometimes I wonder if I'm more judgmental as a Christian than I was before I gave my life to Jesus.

10 years ago I surrendered my life to Christ. Funny, I still feel like I'm just beginning! Like, I'm just beginning to have some victory over judgment in my life. Judgment is meant to give us an understanding of right and wrong. Problem is, judgment stripped of compassion quickly becomes condemnation.

I've been thinking a lot about how Jesus reacts to hurting people. When He saw crowds of wayward humans, His heart was moved with compassion. He felt their distress, depression, and loneliness.

Knowledge happily partners with conceit (it "puffs" us up) but love strengthens and changes people. Am I really sometimes more judgmental now...? Yes. When my knowledge of right and wrong becomes misapplied judgment on a person for what they're doing, I end up on a pedestal. Though I would never say with my lips that I'm better than anyone else, I might very well say it with my life--or at the very least, my thoughts.

I don't want to condemn! I want to love. So I've been praying to God to move my heart with compassion for His people. As a result, I am beginning to see glimmers of His character in my own. I can't make this happen; by my own efforts, I'll just end up doing what I really hate doing. Then, the judge and the judged both end up robbed.

By the way, I'm not condemning myself, either; I'm just being honest. There are things in my life that need to change; that change is something I'm willing to fight for.