Do not judge, and you will not be judged; Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.
Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
Luke 6:37 NIV
COVID fatigue is real and it manifests itself in different ways for different people. In the last few weeks I have caught myself being very judgmental. I have judged the hospital and retirement home executives who gave “extra” vaccines to family members, I have judged the people who are not adhering to my interpretation of the “stay at home” order, I have judged the people who are travelling out of the country on vacations “because they can”, and I have judged the person who said that their son should have claimed CERB because “the government is now not going to collect it back”. Unfortunately, I have not just judged them “in my head” but I have climbed on the proverbial high horse and spoken my judgements aloud.
In my self-righteous moments, I can pretend that these judgements are about my superior integrity. But in my honest, humble moments with the Lord, I have had to admit that these are only the tip of the iceberg of the judgements I make of people both consciously and subconsciously on a daily basis. These judgements reveal more about myself and my heart than about others and they encourage me to look inward.
“Who am I to judge when I walk imperfectly”
As leaders we make judgements about people that we work with all of the time. Here are just a few of the ways we judge others:
- Morality Judgements. We judge the honesty, trustworthiness, sincerity, and integrity of people.
- Competence Judgements. We judge the capability, intelligence, skillfulness and confidence of others.
- Relational Judgement. We judge how friendly, likeable and kind other people are.
Very often, we are judging whether or not someone is “just like us” or like we wish they would be, forgetting that God has created us uniquely and differently. Just because others think or behave or perform differently than we do does not make them wrong – it just makes them different. As the body of Christ we are all different.
Our choice to judge and criticize others can cause suffering to both ourselves and others. Our critical spirit can pollute our heart, it can rob us of joy and peace, it can diminish our belief that God is the ultimate judge and authority, and it can lead to a sense of superiority and pride. God wants us to have humble hearts, not to think of ourselves as better than others or to act superior to others.
“Here’s one way to know I’ve forgotten the gospel of grace; when your sin bothers me more than my own.”
Scripture warns judgmental people that they will be judged by the same measure with which they judge others. While we are taught to confront sinful behaviour in a loving way, we are also taught to have love and compassion for those who are not just like us.
I have called two of the people I got on my “high horse” with, apologized for the judgements I was making of them and others and have confessed to the Lord other areas where I know I am guilty of judgements that say more about myself than those I am judging.
Some reflection questions for this week:
- How are you coping with COVID fatigue? Is it manifesting itself in ways that you need to repent about and turn from?
- How are those you lead and work with coping with COVID fatigue? Are you judging them or are you offering support to them?
- Are you judging those you work with in ways that are holding you back from a deeper relationship with them?
- Are there judgements of others you need to let go of because they are robbing you of internal peace and joy?
- Is there anyone you need to apologize to?
