4 minute read
By Bethany Rees

Is it possible to be a nice person but have a sick and twisted heart? 

I believe so because I once had a sick and twisted heart. 

You see, I’ve always been a nice person. I never really talked bad about people (to their face or behind their backs). 

BUT, despite my friendly smile, my heart was sick and twisted with judgment. 

On the inside, my heart was hardened with judgment of what people did or didn’t do to align with my Southern American Christian paradigm. 

On the inside I was judgy with people and the things or processes they have or use. 

For example, here were some internal comments I thought about people, things, or processes: 

Over-the-top Birthday parties: 

“I can’t believe she spent so much time and money on the birthday party decorations. She must have spent hours on Pinterest, and it’s not like the kids even care about the decorations. I’d never waste money like this.” 

OR 

People’s Economic or Relationship Status: 

“Bless their hearts, I don’t understand why they don’t work to get out of their situation. I guess they want to live like that…”

OR

People making bad choices: 

“I can’t believe he just did that. What kind of person does this? He should know better.” 

I’m ashamed to admit just how internally judgy I was with people. My heart was upside down from where it should have been. 

But when I began serving as a high school administrator God started tweaking my heart and changing my paradigm. 

As an administrator I saw some of the hardest, most broken parts of humanity and society.   And instead of developing my usual internal snide, rude, and judgy comments…God started opening my eyes to His children. 

People who were hurting, broken, exposed to or were living without the knowledge of how much God cares for them. 

I saw poverty, mental health issues, neglect, abuse, suicide, drug use, terribly behaved parents, political pressure, divisions by race, sexual orientation, or economic status, and my list could go on and on. 

But at the heart of all of “situations” or “things,” there were people. 

God’s children. 

The negative voice in my head began getting quieter and quieter. I began setting still before God in all situations and concerning all people and things. 

God started breaking my heart for what broke His. 

And in that brokenness, He started turning my heart back to its rightful place. 

God had created me to love Him and to love others, but judgment isn’t love. 

It’s condemnation, and condemnation wasn’t my role to play.  

I was beginning to understand that my role was to be the hands and feet of Christ by loving and serving all kinds of people in all kinds of situations. 

God showed me that I shouldn’t judge the situation the person finds him/herself in, but that I should represent His love to them in it and through it. 

And because of my exposure to some of the darkest sides of humanity, God was able to tweak my heart so it sat from a new perspective…with love and with a new spirit. 

As you experience hardship or witness others going through hardship, I pray that God also tweaks your heart so you become softened. May you see and notice people, withhold judgment from them, and love them where they are. 

After all, isn’t that what He did for us? 

“but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” ~Romans 5:8

Know Better. Do Better. Live Better. Let God Tweak Your Heart!

Rocks before Sand!

Scripture: 

“And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.”

~ Ezekiel 36:26

Theme Song: 

Casting Crowns - Here’s My Heart

References Used:

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.