The Audacity to Judge Others

About a year ago, my son came home with news that his paternal great uncle was in the E.R. Though I tried to give him a crash course on faith, he was convinced that he wasn’t going to make it. As I sat there praying under my breath, I realized that people were speaking OVER his life, ABOUT his life including people he’d never met such as well-meaning doctors and specialists. Those same people were speaking words about a man they’d just met to people who knew him all his life and had convinced them that he wasn’t going to live. In that moment, I realized how people have said similar things about me. Things that were negative, unconstructive, and judgmental. When I saw that, I immediately negated those words and replaced them with Word-based confessions. But then I realized...I’ve said the same.

Self-Reflection

I’ve condemned, criticized and judged others. I said what I thought they could or should have done. Decided what I thought should happen to them since their decisions and actions didn’t meet up to my expectations which meant my words were hovering over their lives. And because they were, I realized I was no different than those doctors, in that I said that others weren’t going to make it as well. Proverbs 18:22 says, ‘Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.’ Though I wasn’t speaking literal death over their lives, my words had the same effect and because they did, I was eating the fruit of them. Matthew 7:1, 2 says, ‘Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.’ The fact that I’d spoken criticism, condemnation and judgment upon someone, meant that criticism, condemnation, and judgment would come upon me, and the same is true for you.

Stop Speaking Curses

I don’t want to speak over someone’s affairs and life like that anymore, and have since repented, and I encourage you to do the same. I don’t want to contribute to someone else’s failure, and more importantly, it’s not my place to determine what should happen to those who have wronged me. Romans 12:19 says, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay ” says the Lord.’ Therefore, I don’t have to put my two cents in about how He should execute it. I’ve also decided to keep my penetrating commentary about current events, people, and life in general to myself. Do I slip up every now and then? Absolutely, and so will you. But just keep at it. Get in the habit of watching what you say about other people because your words are hovering over their lives, and yours.

Pray this with me: Heavenly Father, please forgive every critical, condemning, and judgmental word that has ever come out of my mouth. I repent Lord for judging and I pray for crop and root failure over those words. I ask that You would be good to those individuals because You said it is the goodness of God that leads to repentance. So I thank You that I am experiencing your goodness now and that they will experience it in the future. In Jesus’ name.

Confess this with me: Holy Spirit, set a guard, over my mouth and keep watch over the door of my lips when I want to criticize, judge, and condemn. (Psalm 141:3)

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