The Challenge 10 June, 2004

I'm really having a tough time getting these out lately. Basically having a tough time doing anything related to Bible study, prayer, and such. Just not doing well with that part of my life. I'm positive that the rest of what is going on around me is happening because of my struggle with studying and reading and praying. It's not non-existent...it just seems like it is a struggle to get into it. I don't know... I've really been running and lifting a lot lately and when I get done with all that, I am totally beat and have been going to sleep at 9pm. Up at 0330 and nothing but running in between. Guess it is wearing me down a bit. I'm just a bit blah these last few days. Deb asked me if I'm stressing at work and I told her no... don't think I'm stressed at all but just blah overall. I can't really put my finger on it... Maybe the below...

P.S. thanks to all you who dropped me a line last Challenge.  I always like hearing from you even if it is only once in a while!

Critical Spirit

It seems that my friends and I are having a problem with being critical lately. They have called it having a critical spirit. They are being critical with their wives, with their kids, with co-workers, and fellow students. I myself have been fairly critical lately of my kids, which is causing my wife to be critical of me and the spiral goes on and on...

I don't know what it is about other people. They just seem to get under my skin so quickly, especially those of us who are close to each other. I mean my kids just seem to know what buttons to push to get me riled up and I jump on them so quickly for doing silly stupid stuff that I should let roll off my back... it's just crazy. I know I shouldn't do it but I just keep on doing it anyway.

Some teen friends of mine were explaining to me just the opposite; how they can't talk to their mom or dad or both for longer than 5 seconds without getting critical, angry, upset, frustrated or whatever. We've all been asking for prayer for this "critical spirit" but it seems to be getting worse in the circles I run in lately.

I know that I am about one of the worst people at moving the head knowledge I have into actions. Actions are so hard sometimes when we are bogged down in the day-to-day grind of "life" as we know it in America. But, I think we all need to take some action on this one... God Says,

"Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you." Matthew 7:1-2

"Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven." Luke 6:37

When I'm being critical, I'm judging the other person by a standard... usually my standard. Sometimes my interpretation of God's standard... regardless I'm judging and in my own mind passing sentence that the other person does not meet the standard. This is what being critical is about really, isn't it? Judging them by your own standards? Matthew above says that if you judge, you will be judged by the same measure. I believe that he is stating that this happens here on earth as well as in heaven. What I mean is that if you are critical of someone... there will be people who are critical of you and it will end up in a vicious cycle that continues along down a path that has no end until you do what Dr. Luke says... forgive and you will be forgiven.

I know, in my head, that this is exactly what is happening in my own house. I'm critical of my kids, my wife is critical of me being critical with my kids, I get defensive and the cycle goes on and on and the frustration among all in my house grows and grows...It happens on the streets with the drivers we are critical with. They do something bad in your eyes, you compensate and do something bad, someone else thinks what you do is bad and it gets passed on and we have a whole traffic jam full of people who are frustrated and critical.

Notice how the focus of the critical spirit is on someone else and not you? Notice how our critically is directed outward? What if we looked at ourselves for a moment? Maybe from God's eyes? Are my bone-headed mistakes any better or worse in God's eyes then the things that my kids are doing? How about your wife? Your mother, father, brother, sister, pastor, fellow traffic jam driver, co-worker? Come on now! Can you say that there is nothing that you can look at in yourself that someone cannot be critical of? You're lying if you say yes! We're just people and no one is going to measure up to standards that you get to create. That is why God tells us in Matthew and Luke to not judge others because it will come back to haunt you (NDV - New Dave Translation/paraphrase). This is exactly what God told a group of Israelites in the book of Ezekiel...

"You who judged your sisters, bear your own shame also, because the sins which you committed were more abominable than theirs; they are more righteous than you. Yes, be disgraced also, and bear your own shame, because you justified your sisters." Ezikiel 16:52

There are some people who will always get on our nerves. They will always do things that you cannot accept and will want to be critical of. But we are not the authors of change; God is. We are not the Judge; God is. We are not perfect; God is. And we are not here to be critical of other people. Like I said I am one of the most critical people I know and this is medicine for me as well...so...

God asks us to do two things...

Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him, ""You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' this is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Matthew 22:36-39

Who are you being critical of today? Who's under your skin? Is it your mom? Your kids? Your wife? Maybe if we concentrated on Loving the Lord with all our hearts, minds, and souls, and loving our neighbor as ourselves... we'd have a little less time to be critical and judge others. I'm just guessing but if I would spend some more time loving God... I don't think I'd have much time at all to be critical of anyone! Furthermore, by focusing on God maybe God can use our focus on Him as an example to others and will actually use us to change others in that way vice our wonderfully critical spirit we have all be having of late...

What if today, when you get that urge to be critical of someone you instead focus on God. What if you just loved them instead? What if when you are talking to your mom and she does something that just gets totally under your skin you pretend they are you and you love them instead? How about when you see someone being critical of someone else and you want to point out the critical event - thus being critical yourself - you just don't and love him or her instead. Do you think you can just do it maybe once today? Maybe just focus on doing that today. Worry about doing it tomorrow when tomorrow comes. I know what I have to do. How about you?

Until next week time ~ Dave

To make comments, to suggest topics you'd like me to tackle, to get past devotionals, or to be added to this weekly "devotional email" please write to: Dave Hansen at philip419@earthlink.net