Leave the Judgment to God

The winter doldrums; a time of fleeting sunlight, persistent cold, and long nights. For many, this time of the year can be very depressing. As a Christian, we should not discount the difficulties that those around us are having, nor feel somehow guilty to be struggling ourselves. Christians are not immune to depression, nor can we simply “pray harder” or “have more faith” to overcome problems that are rooted in our physiology. God created us as complex beings with a myriad of needs both physical and spiritual. It always bothers me when Christians decide to dispense a quick diagnosis of someone else’s problem, especially when that diagnosis involves a snap judgment on the status of someone else’s faith. Our faith is NOT judged by the circumstances we’re facing in life. Only God knows the purpose behind the good and bad “fortune” that life brings our way, and last I checked, he hasn’t told any of us about it. If a Christian has cancer, it’s not because he/she is a sinner or because he/she lacked the faith needed to be healed. And yet, we always seem to be ready to jump to conclusions, to judge first. Or, if the problem is in our own life, we seem quick to look for the lesson that God is trying to teach us (perhaps in the hopes that it’ll end quicker if we can prove to God that we learned something). The mind of God is far higher than the mind of man, let’s just let him handle the hard thinking. Why don’t we focus on our responsibility? Do the right thing, obey God when times are good, and obey God when times are bad. Oh yeah, don’t forget to be the first one to lend a helping hand, and leave the judgment to God.