Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”
NL Daily Devotion for Wednesday, February 5, 2025
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Honestly, the person I judge the most harshly is myself. I’ve had so many conversations with recovery fellows and close friends in which I’m being really, really hard on myself and they’ll say, “If anyone else did thus-and-so, would you judge them the same way?” And the answer is always a resounding, “Of course not!” So, um, why do I feel like there’s some different standard that applies to me?
My friends may or may not gently, lovingly, point out that holding myself to a different standard than others is a form of pride. It might look like humility, but it’s not. What it says, in contradictory fashion, is that (a) I should be better than others (I am not and cannot be) and (b) I’m worse than others and therefore not worthy of the same love and forgiveness as others (I am and I have it). Humility is this: I am no better nor worse than any other human being and therefore I am fully worthy of love and forgiveness no matter what.
Yes, we need to practice this with the other people in our lives. We ought not judge or condemn (we can’t possibly know everything that’s going on in another person’s life/head), and we need to forgive (which doesn’t mean we don’t set healthy boundaries to avoid being abused). But we also need to remember to practice this with ourselves.
How can I show myself compassion and love today?
