Relational Reset: 7 Days To Unlearning The Habits That Hold You BackSample

Surrender Judgment 

As I often do, I decided one evening to take a peek at social media. Of course, that energy vampire took more time and attention than I intended, and I found myself experiencing a wide array of emotions as I scrolled through my newsfeeds. I became disappointed and frustrated with friends who held a different view than I did on the hot-button issue of the day. 

Naturally, I began to type out Facebook replies and tweets. I needed to question some folks and set others straight. Typing, editing, and deleting many times. Then the Lord spoke to me and reminded me of James 2:13: “Mercy triumphs over judgment.” To give some context, James writes, “Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful” (2:12–13). To be sure, there will be a judgment day. But today is not that day, and I am not the judge. I do not have to take on every person I disagree with. Rather, I can be merciful, speaking truth in love as the Holy Spirit leads and not just because I want to or because I think I’m right. I can show mercy rather than judgment. My judgment would not change the positions of the people I love and would only serve to further divide us.