No one has ever learned anything by being perfect. "Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentence". Luke 15:7. From our mistakes and mis-steps come experience. From our mistakes comes humility. From our mistakes comes humbleness. From our mistakes comes a desire to do better and grow. Unfortunately judgement seems to be a way some people justify their mistakes to themselves. The "I'm not so bad because I would never do that" or "My beliefs are right and yours are wrong" is a very slippery road to travel. You always have to remember we are all equal in Our Father's eyes. He loves us all and sometimes he teaches us hard lessons and some of us learn them the hard way. I have traveled it at it's high point looking down upon those I thought beneath me. I traveled it's low points reaching my hand up to those I had previously looked down upon.
It was at my lowest point I was given to the realization that I need to become honest with myself. To live honestly with myself and those around me. To accept my limitations, my imperfections, and to embrace Our Father and the lessons that were hard learned. Our Father knew my flaws and the lessons I needed to learn to hear my calling and then to act upon it. He knew my tendency to justify myself through judgements of others. He's homeless because he is lazy or I am more devout than her because her beliefs are different than mine are easy judgements to make until you walk down their road in their shoes. "Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgement you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured on you. Why do you see the speck in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye." Matthew 7:1-5.
All societies have their own version of the golden rule (which is do unto others as you would others unto you). To live honestly and to treat everyone (and I mean everyone) as you want to be treated yourself. I know a lot of you are thinking "yes, we know this but...". Well, I propose that "but" does not belong in your spiritual vocabulary. That "but" allows judgements that fuel our own discriminations and make it easy for us to justify them. By acknowledging this within ourselves, only then can we accomplish the good we are meant to (and I truly believe we are all meant to do good).
So live honestly with yourself. Accept and forgive yourself. Strive each day to better yourself and strengthen your own flaws and weaknesses. Open your heart and mind to each other. "So Peter opened his mouth and said, Truly I understand God shows no partiality." Acts 10:34.
