Nashville, Tennessee, United States - The Upper Room Daily Devotional "Looking Beyond" for Wednesday, 2 July 2014 - Read Matthew 7:1-5

Nashville, Tennessee, United States - The Upper Room Daily Devotional "Looking Beyond" for Wednesday, 2 July 2014 - Read Matthew 7:1 “Don’t judge, so that you won’t be judged. 2 For with whatever judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with whatever measure you measure, it will be measured to you. 3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but don’t consider the beam that is in your own eye? 4 Or how will you tell your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye;’ and behold, the beam is in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite! First remove the beam out of your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck out of your brother’s eye.
Don’t judge, and you won’t be judged. Don’t condemn, and you won’t be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.(Luke 6:37 (CEB))
I work with a father-and-son maintenance team. The father is jovial and easygoing, always ready to carry out his maintenance duties with a smile. His son is the sullen, quiet, despondent type, and I admit that I have formed an unfavorable opinion of him. One day I was in the break room for lunch at the same time as his father. I asked how his son was doing. He said, “Well, he’s doing better.” I asked, “What do you mean by ‘better’?” He told me his son had lost his young wife to cancer about a year ago. They had been married only one year, and his son was having a hard time adjusting. The father’s words made me realize how quickly and easily we can judge other people without knowing anything about them. We sometimes even pass these opinions on without an iota of information about what these people might be going through. Everyone has a story, whether we know that story or not. Matthew 7:3 reminds me as a follower of Christ to look beyond outward appearances in my relationships with my family, my friends, and my acquaintances and to share God’s love with everyone.
The Author: Sandra Ramirez (Ohio, USA)
Thought for the Day: Thought for the Day God calls us to love, not judge.
Prayer: God of love, open our eyes to see beyond outward appearances to the pains and struggles of our brothers and sisters. Amen.

Prayer focus: Someone grieving the loss of a spouse
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