Hope everyone had a great weekend.
Now for the answer to Friday’s riddle. Butch posted an answer that was very creative and and would work. His answer was a variation on the one I had, so I’ll call it right, but different. How’s that for politically correct?!
Here’s my answer. Both girls were indeed born in Boston, Massachussets to the same parents. However, one of the girls was born before the U.S. existed and the other was born shortly after. Before I get angry posts about this, I’ll concede — you can shoot holes in this answer all day long. Just work with me here! Remember, this is for fun — no prizes involved!!
My point is we often make assumptions about people and their circumstances. Most of us probably thought of these girls in a present day context when actually they were born over 200 years ago. That one fact changes their story completely.
How often do we make assumptions about people we don’t know, or for that matter people we do know? Too often we judge others on what little we know of their life story. The truth is we don’t have all the facts. Yet most of the time that doesn’t stop us from judging the decisions they make or the circumstances they find themselves in. There is a word for this that we generally think of in a different context – Prejudice. This word simply means “prejudgment,” which is an assumption made about someone without having enough knowledge to really be accurate. I firmly believe I have no prejudice in me when it comes to race or ethnicity, but it’s a little scary for me to think I could be prejudice in other, more subtle ways.
There is only one person who has all the facts - God. That’s why he is the only one true judge. And it’s why Jesus taught us in Luke 6:37 (NLT):
Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven.
When we judge others’ actions or circumstances we open ourselves up to the same inaccurate judgement, the same prejudice, from others. For this reason, we are called to simply love others as they are. We are not instruments of God’s of judgment. We are conduits of his love.
It’s yet one more way to…..
Live The Mission,
Greg
