In Luke 6:37 we are taught not to judge. I was just reminded why. It’s very painful to have someone place judgment on you or how you are living your life. They seem to think that the decisions you are making are the wrong ones or that the things you are doing should be different.
It hurts so badly because they have no idea what you have been going through. They have no idea how hard you have tried to find the right answers and do what is best. No idea how many tears you have already shed or how many prayer you have constantly said. No idea how many sleepless nights you have had.
We all have things so difficult to deal with that we have no idea what to do, so we just do our best. To some our best just isn’t good enough. Even when we lay it at God’s feet and try to have faith there are those who think we should be doing something else.
Unfortunately, some think they have the right to judge. They think that they know things that they don’t actually know at all, things that they could never, ever possibly know without being in your shoes, or in your head, or in your heart; they could never know unless they were living your life.
So after all the tears I see it as a lesson and a blessing. To be reminded to try my best to never think I know someone’s intentions, or motivations, and most especially their heart. It’s impossible to know any of this without being them. I feel grateful to know that there is only one who is qualified to judge; one who is perfect enough to do it. One who suffered all this sorrow for us and with us, so he truly knows how to be the perfect judge. And it isn’t you or I.
Showing posts with label Prayer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Prayer. Show all posts
Saturday, August 8, 2009
God Can Be Found Everywhere ~ Even in Las Vegas
Last July three friends and I took a trip to Las Vegas. While we were there we saw Danny Gans show at the Mirage. I recently heard that he had died. He had been voted Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year 11 times and had won about every other award possible. He hosted a packed house every night. He was a great entertainer who impersonated dozens of singers, entertainers, celebrities, and politicians. His show lasted two hours and was filled with great music and comedy and it was clean too!
My favorite part of his show was at the end. He told his story; how he became an entertainer. He said that he had been a minor league baseball player and was doing great and breaking records when he collided with another player. He received an injury that ended his dream of playing baseball. He ended up in the hospital sharing a room with a man diagnosed with a terminal illness. They shared their stories and the man said that he knew he would personally be okay and that now he understood why he was in the hospital. He felt like it was to let Danny know that God knew how much he loved baseball and that he wouldn’t take that dream from Danny unless he had a better plan for him; a better future. Danny Gans said that this was the beginning of him finding a new dream. The man was healed and they continued exchanging Christmas cards and letters for years.
His message was that if your dreams seem to get shattered or aren’t working out as you had planned, to never give up, because maybe God just has something better planned for you.
He gave credit to God for his success as an entertainer. It was incredible to me that in Las Vegas of all places, this entertainer was not ashamed to be a Christian. Here in a place where so many people don’t seem to know anything of God, he praised God’s name. What a great example to all of us. It made me ask myself, “Would I dare share my testimony of God’s hand in my life, in a place where people mock him?” I believe I would and I hope that the way I live my life shows that I love Him and believe in Him.
A few weeks earlier I heard a speaker give a message that went along with this. She said she felt that God doesn’t just say yes, or no. She believes that when we ask for something he answers yes, not yet, or I have something better in store for you. I loved her thought. I like to believe that when it feels like our prayers aren’t answered the way we had hoped for or when our dreams aren’t fulfilled like we had envisioned they would be, that it doesn’t mean that the answer is no. If we don’t get what we want at first maybe it means that God has something better in store for us. A dream better than we could have ever imagined for ourselves. He knows what we need and what will truly make us happy much better than we do.
God is so wise and great. We just need to let him be the captain and acknowledge that He knows what is best for us. So never give up your dreams, just believe in Him.
My favorite part of his show was at the end. He told his story; how he became an entertainer. He said that he had been a minor league baseball player and was doing great and breaking records when he collided with another player. He received an injury that ended his dream of playing baseball. He ended up in the hospital sharing a room with a man diagnosed with a terminal illness. They shared their stories and the man said that he knew he would personally be okay and that now he understood why he was in the hospital. He felt like it was to let Danny know that God knew how much he loved baseball and that he wouldn’t take that dream from Danny unless he had a better plan for him; a better future. Danny Gans said that this was the beginning of him finding a new dream. The man was healed and they continued exchanging Christmas cards and letters for years.
His message was that if your dreams seem to get shattered or aren’t working out as you had planned, to never give up, because maybe God just has something better planned for you.
He gave credit to God for his success as an entertainer. It was incredible to me that in Las Vegas of all places, this entertainer was not ashamed to be a Christian. Here in a place where so many people don’t seem to know anything of God, he praised God’s name. What a great example to all of us. It made me ask myself, “Would I dare share my testimony of God’s hand in my life, in a place where people mock him?” I believe I would and I hope that the way I live my life shows that I love Him and believe in Him.
A few weeks earlier I heard a speaker give a message that went along with this. She said she felt that God doesn’t just say yes, or no. She believes that when we ask for something he answers yes, not yet, or I have something better in store for you. I loved her thought. I like to believe that when it feels like our prayers aren’t answered the way we had hoped for or when our dreams aren’t fulfilled like we had envisioned they would be, that it doesn’t mean that the answer is no. If we don’t get what we want at first maybe it means that God has something better in store for us. A dream better than we could have ever imagined for ourselves. He knows what we need and what will truly make us happy much better than we do.
God is so wise and great. We just need to let him be the captain and acknowledge that He knows what is best for us. So never give up your dreams, just believe in Him.
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