Sermon on the Mount cont.

 

“Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. ² For the judgment you give will be the judgment you get, and the measure you give will be the measure you get. ³ Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye but do not notice the log in your own eye? ⁴ Or how can you say to your neighbor, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while the log is in your own eye? ⁵ You actor in some play of life, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.”  Matthew 7, translation edited by author

 

Shakespeare said, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.”  We all live in the story we are telling ourselves.  We play rolls and parts.  Often the story we tell ourselves and others publicly is one where we want to be the s/hero and sage.  But sometimes the story our inner critic tells us in the stillness of night is one where we are the bumbling buffoon.  We can tell ourselves stories where we are the victim or where others see us as the villain.  Our stories are complicated and complex, being written in real time.  Our stories are handed down from your ancestors.  You are still living some of the narratives given to you by family, friends, teachers, and preachers of your childhood.  Inside you, your inner seven-year-old is still dreaming and playing of a story filled with joy and laughter, but too often we have taken adulting to mean something serious and somber, after all did you read the paper this morning!!  Insert outrage here.   

 

Often, we judge others because we judge ourselves.  Wait…re-read that last sentence.  Our judgement of others is rooted in our own inner critic of seeing ourselves as not enough.  More specifically, we judge other publicly in our comments because inside us our interior critic is constantly giving us two thumbs down.  There is a gap between our inner critic and the mask we wear in the world; especially on social media where we photoshop the best picture to make it look like our life is easy and breezy and blessed (although not in the Beatitude sort of blessedness).  There is a gap between the story we tell out-loud and the one that wakes us up in the middle of the night for a chat.  And between that gap there is a log to connect who we long to be and who we are.

 

What is the story you are telling yourself?  Is it a comedy or tragedy or drama or musical?  Listen to the stories you share with others today, are you always the s/hero and sage or the victim or even the villain.  I know the stories I tell others are ones where I am the one bumbling and making all the mistakes.  I can make myself small, but that is just to protect myself from criticism.  I reason that if I point out my blunders first, you can’t.  I say this because I am prayerfully seeking to notice the log in my own eye…the hurt that resides in my own soul…the ache in my life. 

 

We judge others because the color commentary in our mind is judging us.  What if, you let God’s love get a word in edgewise today?  What if, you let God edit your story?  What if, we stopped sharing, stepped off the stage, wiped off the make-up and masks and took off the costumes and sat in the naked now of this moment with God?  I pray that question provokes and evokes something within your soul for the sake of your life at the midpoint of February.  May the love of God clothe you and reside in you today.  Amen.