Ever been upset about something happening to someone else? I have that problem a lot. Especially when it comes to my brother. Weird as it is, I'm pretty protective of him, even though he's older than me. Anyhow. Yesterday I was a bit upset over something going on with him. Then I remembered a little lesson a friend taught me earlier this year.

She told me that taking up offenses for others is a form of judging. If we take up their offenses for them we're making assumptions about the person or situation that is opposing them. I hadn't ever really thought about that before. But it kinda makes sense, doesn't it? We tend to hear one side of a story, and draw conclusions based on that. However, if we heard the entire story from all parties involved, we would often come to a different conclusion. Interesting thought... and something I wanted to share with you.

All I can say is that I'm very glad that God has blessed me with a friend enough older than me that she can give me advice like that. Even when it's not something I want to hear, what she tells me is normally what I need to hear. So I guess you can also go away with the thought that good advice comes from unexpected places: keep your ears open!!