The Long Walk

 OFFENDED

1.	to irritate, annoy, or anger; cause resentful displeasure in

2.	to affect (the sense, taste, etc.) disagreeably.

3.	to violate or transgress (a criminal, religious, or moral law).

4.	to hurt or cause pain to.

5.	(in Biblical use) to cause to fall into sinful ways.

It's pretty easy to get offended isn't it? I mean really, how many times a day does someone or something irritate, annoy or anger you? How often does something affect you disagreeably? How often are you hurt? Lots. 

We're told that we shouldn't pick up an offense and we really shouldn't pick up someone else's offense. What exactly does that mean? I think it means that we are going to be hurt. People are going to do things that anger us and that's ok. It's ok to be angry, I mean Jesus got angry. It's ok to feel hurt by something someone has done. But what I think is important is that we learn how to forgive and not judge. And picking up someone else's offense means that it didn't even happen to us, we're just angry by association. 

We like to judge people. We look at someone and think we have them all figured out. We see their actions and think we've got them pegged. But the truth is we don't have a clue. Ok, so the clerk at the grocery store didn't smile at you and seemed annoyed with you, maybe her husband left her and she had to get this job to try and support her 2 kids at home and she's angry and desperate and hurting - can we not extend a little grace? Alright, you got passed up for a raise and promotion that you felt was rightfully yours - do you know what the financial situation is of the company? Do you know the ins and outs of the person who did get the job? Do you really know it all? Do you even know enough to pass the slightest hint of judgment?

We take things so personally. The bank teller huffs at you and you take it as a direct assault on your core being. Does she even know you!? Do you know her? Does it really matter? 

Please, please know that I am speaking to myself more than anything here. God is really working on me to walk in love and it is playing over and over in my spirit to walk in love and in order to do that I am becoming painfully aware of what it means to not walk in love and that awareness is coming as God is replaying many, many moments in my life. I am that person, well, by the grace of God I was that person, the one who got offended easily. The one who judged and held onto grace like it was something you had to earn from me. No, grace is free and we should give it freely - it cost Jesus everything to extend grace to us -and it is God's grace that we give, not our own, so we should be giving it away every chance we get.


I am currently in a situation where some are feeling that they can pass judgment on me and my family for a very difficult decision that we had to make. And I can honestly tell you it is so gut-wrenchingly painful to be judged that way. No one but us and God know what we went through to come to this decision, no one knows the agony and tears. No one. Yet some think they know and they come to their own decision, they decide to pass judgment when they know nothing.

Could you imagine being accused of a crime and you walk into court to begin trial and the judge looks at you and says - "Oh, I've heard all about you - you're guilty, take her away."  That's it - judgment has been passed, because the judge thinks he knows it all. 

How often in life are we like that judge? I have been him way more than I would care to admit or even know. Father, please forgive me. Who am I to think I am even good enough to make a judgment on another? Forgive me. For all the people that I had mere moments with and instead of letting the light of Jesus shine I threw the spotlight of judgment, forgive me! Whether it be celebrities and leadership or family and friends, Father, forgive me for trying to play God and judge. 

God and God alone is worthy to judge. 

I pray, from the side of one being judged, please, extend some grace and let God do the judging. The grace that you would want extended to you, extend to others. Walk in love. 

God help me to do just that - Father, extend grace to me to walk it out to walk in love.

Walking...