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REAL POWER: MAXING OUT ON GOD'S LOVE |
HE THAT IS WITHOUT SIN, LET HIM CAST
THE FIRST STONE
Two thousand years ago, religious
authorities brought a woman to Jesus and told him she was caught in
the act of committing adultery.
In those days, the punishment for
adultery was death by stoning. The religious authorities asked Jesus
what they should do. Should they put her to death by stoning as
required by the law?
The authorities were setting a trap
trying to get Jesus to say something they could use against him.
Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with his finger. Then he
got up and said to her accusers, “He that is without sin, let him cast
the first stone.” He then stooped to the ground and again wrote in
the dust with his finger. The silence was deafening, and her accusers
marched out single file with nothing to say.
Not one of them was righteous enough
to cast even a single stone in her direction. After they were gone,
Jesus asked the woman if anyone was still accusing her. She said, “No
one, sir.” Jesus replied, “Neither do I condemn you, go, and sin no
more.”
Jesus wasn’t condoning immorality or
giving this woman license to continue in an immoral lifestyle. The
real point of the story is that no one is qualified to cast a stone in
self-righteousness at another individual.
God is the judge of how we live. He
is fully qualified and able to judge in a fair manner without our
help. We don’t need to become religious police, judge, or jury. We
need to love other people who have problems and leave the judgment up
to God.
Jesus went even further in his attack
on self-righteousness. He said the judgment we pass on to others
becomes the standard by which we are judged. People who slip into the
trap of self-righteousness set a very high bar over which they will
have to jump.
Your chance of being perfect is zero,
and if you are smart, you won’t criticize other people who aren’t
perfect. Whatever shortcomings other people have, you would be wise
to send them your love and leave the judgment up to God.
The day you become perfect will be
the day you have the right to become the arm of God and cast the first
stone.
THE CURE FOR JUDGMENTAL THINKING IS
LOVE
The cure for judgmental thinking is
love.
It’s impossible to have a critical
attitude when your heart is full of love. You look at other people
though eyes of love rather than eyes of judgment. You leave the
judgment up to God, and spend your time spreading God’s love around.
When you practice God’s presence and
max out on his love, you find that negative and judgmental thoughts
diminish. The more you focus on God’s love, the less you focus on
these destructive ways of thinking.
USE THE GENTLE APPROACH
Once you become aware of your own
negative and judgmental thoughts, it becomes possible to change them.
These destructive patterns of thought can only be modified by the
gentle approach. You cannot use a rod of iron to beat judgmental
thinking out of your mind. You can only love it away. You must be
gentle with yourself and accepting of yourself as you let go of this
critical way of assessing the world. Harsh judgments toward yourself
can quickly revive negative and judgmental patterns of thought.
You must develop acceptance and love
for yourself as you are and others as they are. When you slip back
into negativity and judgment, accept this as part of your human
condition. Don’t beat yourself up for relapses into negativity and
judgment. Be kind to yourself. These destructive thinking patterns
cannot survive in a mind dominated by love.
Negativity and judgment are
psychological cockroaches that inhabit the dark nooks and crannies of
your mind. You will probably never eradicate them completely.
Nevertheless, if you are loving enough and accepting enough, these
pests will rarely cause major distress.
Affirmation:
I can never completely eradicate negative and judgmental thoughts, but
I can modify them using a gentle approach. I must be gentle with
myself and accepting of myself as I let go of this twisted way of
assessing the world. When I slip back into negativity and judgment, I
don’t beat myself up. I accept this as part of my human condition.
These types of thoughts cannot long survive in a heart and mind
dominated by love. Negativity and judgment are the psychological
cockroaches that inhabit the dark nooks and crannies of my mind. I
will never eradicate them completely. However, if I am loving enough
and accepting enough, these pests will rarely cause distress. I will
neutralize negativity and judgment through the power of God’s love. I
will max out on God’s love.
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RED SEA CHRONICLES DVD
When Dr. Dave isn't working as a flying doctor for the Indian Health
Service, He is sailing around the world on his sailboat. Find
out what it's like to sail on the ocean of your dreams by watching
Captain Dave's DVD.
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