Judge Not…

I was studying 3 Nephi Chapter 14 today. It talks about Jesus Christ taught the Nephites about judging others and instructed them to seek blessings from Heavenly Father through prayer.

Who am I to judge another,

When I walk imperfectly?

In the quiet heart is hidden

Sorrow that the eye can’t see

Who am I to judge another?

Lord, I would follow thee.

My heart was touched. I was reflecting on myself: who am I to judge him, especially he is the one I love most in this world? He might be not perfect, and I am imperfect either, I do have a lot of weaknesses especially for as a wife and as a mother.

May be I just merely pass in all the callings I have. It is just happened that his weaknesses unfortunately is may be serious than mine. I am a daughter of God and he is a son of God too. Man do have his pride. I am not in his shoes to judge him, as I do not know and would not understand the challenges and temptations he has been through during we were not by his side.

During I found out that something is suspicious, I was devastated. The first message that Sister Saffron sent to me was something related to this I guess. It was the recent October General Conference talk by Elder Robert C. Gay of the Presidency of the Seventy – “Take upon Ourselves the Name of Jesus Christ”.

The first thing that came into my mind was, “What? Why this message? Is this the right message for me at this moment? Seriously? Right now?” I was ignorant to read the talk, and kept on harboured on my sadness alone. That night, I opened the Gospel Library App and started to listen the talk as I knew that there must be a reason why the message was sent to me at this time.

How does God see? Elder Robert C. Gay addressed it with what had Brigham Young taught:

“I wish to urge upon the Saints... to understand men and women as they are, and not understand them as you are.”

“How often it is said – ‘Such a person has done wrong, and he cannot be a Saint.”... We hear some swear and lie... [or] break the Sabbath... Do not judge such persons, for you do not know the design of the Lord concerning them. ...[Rather,] bear with them.”

I was struck. Was the Spirit asked me to see him as He sees? Savior would not letting anyone of our burdens go unnoticed by Him, this including me and him as well. May be he was struggling with his own weaknesses, but just every time may be he gives in to temptations.

Elder Robert C. Gay said,

“God will work wonders among us as we sanctify ourselves. We sanctify ourselves by purifying our hearts. We purify our hearts as we hear Him, repent of our sins, become converted, and love as He loves. The Savior asked us, “For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye?”

“...Jesus did this so that each of us may always understand that His love is greater than ou fears, our wounds, our addictions, our doubts, our temptations, our sins, our broken families, our depression and anxieties, our chronic illness, our poverty, our abuse, our despair, and our loneliness. He wants all to know there is nothing and no one He is unable to heal and deliver to enduring joy.”

Finally Elder Gay taught that, we must trust Him.

“His grace is sufficient... The message of the woman at the well is that He knows our life situations and that we can always walk with Him no matter where we stand. To her and to each of us, He says, “Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but [shall have] a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”

Now I think back, I had the almost similar message a year ago when I encountered the same challenge. I felt the Lord was talking to me when I heard the talk by Elder Dale G. Renlund “A Good Shepherd”.

Sometimes, I would wonder how the Spirit works? I am in the midst of my pain and sorrow, and such message seems to be unhealed to me.

I do not know, but one thing I know is only the Lord knows what is best for me. May be He wants me to be a little bit more compassionate and kindness, and that was the qualities I want to increase in my life.

I might understand may be later that, this is how the Lord works on me – small steps at a time. Sometimes those steps are painful, and sometimes they are halting. But those are the small steps that can lead me closer to Him.