Here’s another great insight from my Facebook friend (the same guy who wrote ‘A Testimony of Freedom‘). You probably already know I really cant stand it when people judge others; well, this is a great parable explaining just why we shouldn’t:

While starting my workout a few minutes ago I noticed a guy next to me doing push ups…not going all the way up and all the way down the way you’re supposed to.

I admit my first inclination was to point out his poor form and instruct him in the proper way of doing push ups.

Then I stopped myself.

Yes, I’m not his judge or his instructor…but something else occurred to me.

How do I know he hadn’t been here for two hours and hadn’t already completed six sets of forty push ups…with perfect form.

Answer: I didn’t.

I entered his workout in the middle of it and I hadn’t a clue what happened before I entered.

And if it were the case, my new friend had been working hard long before I arrived, my unsolicited advice would place him in the awkward position of coming to his own defense and explaining precisely what he had done hours before I got there…or responding in an outburst of, “hey mind your own business pal!”

Hardly an atmosphere with which to build a trusting relationship.

So often you and I judge…and perhaps misjudge…people and their lives as theirs and ours intersect in “their middle.”

Dare you and I judge people as we enter the middle of their life?

Do we really believe misjudging people’s lives based on a small snapshot of their life is the best way to help them?

And are you and I sure we’d want to invite others to misjudge us with the same misjudgment we mete out to others?

Next time you’re inclined to label someone a certain way and sum up their substance or lack of it based on a tiny snapshot of their life, stop yourself and remember you haven’t a clue where that person has been before you and they came into contact.

The person you so easily write off could perhaps be in need of a friend to restore them to a healthier mindset.

They just may turn out to be a huge benefit to you and to others.

Think about it.