There have been disputes about any number of things since recorded history. In the world today, one way to settle disputes is with a judge. Judges provide a mechanism for interpreting and understanding events. In addition, a jury of individual people makes a decision on whether a person is innocent or guilty in a case where that person has been accused of doing something wrong or harmful that possibly warrants reciprocity.  Let’s call this scenario a ‘judgement’, a situation where someone has one or more people draw a conclusion about someone, based on evidence presented by multiple persons.

I had the opportunity to hear an individual speak a little bit about judging a couple weeks ago on Sunday.  I was so impressed by what this person had to say and would like to relay a little bit of what they had to offer, as well as some insights of my own.  The end result, I hope will be each of you reading taking a step back and at least giving consideration to the words you read, which relate to judging people.  I would like to talk about our own spheres of life we live in, the spheres of life of others, the intersecting of those spheres, and the importance of understanding our own lack of knowledge.

Our Own Spheres of Life

First and foremost, I am not the expert on judging.  It is something I have to work on each and every day.  But the insights I have to share on it I believe are worth looking into.  I hope you will read, give consideration, and apply what I have to say about judging people.

Each of us individually have lived up to a certain point in our lives.  We have experienced events, come in contact with other people, and formulated our own idea of what existence really is.  We may even be so sure of ourselves that we start to get over-confident.  Perhaps we find faults with people whose view of existence does not match what we have.  I can say for myself that a weakness I have had to overcome was seeing people who did not match my idea of existence and drawing conclusions about those people that I had no business doing.

Let’s take a circle and put each of us in that circle.  That circle represents the accumulation of our life experiences and our view of what reality is.  Take a moment and think about what your view of life is.  What do you think about religion, science, sports, politics, money, the environment, health, food, and so on?  Really think about what your view of existence really is.  This is only part of it.  To really understand your views, you have to come in contact with people who don’t have the same views as you.  These people should immediately stand out to you and you can recognize the difference right away.

The Spheres of Life of Others

Guess what?  Other people have lived up to a certain point in their lives too.  They too have a certain picture of what existence is.  They have their own ideas about a lot of the things you have ideas about.  Chances are, not all of their ideas are going to be the same as yours.  Picture everyone you meet with a sphere surrounding them.  Try to understand that each and every person has life experiences that have molded them into the person they are.  When this is done, understanding people becomes easier.

To know the sphere of life of another individual takes time and spending time with that person.  If you truly want to get to know someone, talk about their life experiences and the things they are interested in.  By understanding the nature of someone, it becomes easier to see why they do the things they do.  Can’t understand why someone is spending so much time at work?  Maybe that person had to work when they were young to help support the family.  Maybe they have an idea that working extra hard is necessary.  Don’t be so quick to formulate a negative opinion about people just because their behavior seems to be out of your sphere of reasonability.

The Intersecting of Spheres of Life

Many of the problems in the world today stem from the intersecting of spheres of life of individuals and the lack of understanding and cooperation therein.  These problems stem from minor conflicts, to full scale wars in the world today.  I am convinced that one of the problems is a jumping to conclusions about someone before getting all the facts straight.  There are plenty of people placing blame and backbiting that it really takes someone doing a full investigation over a lengthy period of time before an even close to accurate decision can be made.  Let me give a list of things to help iterate this:

• Just because someone says something that rubs you the wrong way does not mean that person is intentionally trying to make you mad.
• Because someone does not talk to you does not necessarily mean they don’t like you.
• If you are angry, it does not mean that your anger is a correct response.
• There is almost always a reason that someone does something, even if that reason is hidden to you.
• Each and every person is growing and learning through life.  People will make mistakes, yourself included.

Take a minute and digest what these points are saying.  The end result is that if we really understand that the world if a large place filled with people of different types, then we can safely say that nothing is ever as simple as saying that someone is who you think they appear to be.  By taking time to gather true evidence, show a little kindness to people, you will help bring out the best in people and make the world a better place.

Understanding Our Own Lack of Knowledge

If we took the billions of people and looked at them, each with their own spheres, then the realization is one of many different views on life.  And even the combining of everyone’s spheres of life here on earth, that total knowledge of exact existence and correctness of all events is still relatively small.  With that realization, an approach of first, I do not have all knowledge and power, therefore, I must leave room for error on my part.  And second, I must take time to gather knowledge and evidence, and if I must form a conclusion, do it with as much love and kindness as possible.  I believe that most people here on earth are good people that just make mistakes.

I would suggest a kindness approach.  When you look at people and realize they are just trying to understand and get through life just like you, then you can be much more accepting of them.  Even if you think someone has made a mistake, that does not mean you are correct in that they made a mistake.  It is just your interpretation of their behavior.  Show some love and kindess and help build other people up.  You will find a lot of tension going out the window and situations becoming better.

I hope I’ve been able to offer some insight into juding others.  If nothing else, adopt a kindness and understanding approach before even gathering evidence to draw a conclusion about another individual.  By doing this, I know you will become wiser and have a happier life.