Who am I to judge?

Today I want to write a serious blog- because I've been doing a lot of thinking the last week. Last Sunday I was sitting in church, by a friend of mine, and the thought came to me that she is more than I realized. I mean, she's my friend so I think she's great but it really hit me that she is a child of God with promised blessings and a purpose in life. Then I realized the same was true for everyone around me....and yes I've known this my whole life but I don't always give it the consideration and respect it deserves. Most of the time I am just impatient because people aren't doing or saying what I think they should. I admit I am not perfect and sometimes I forget that I'm not the only one on this earth trying to accomplish something and be a better person. Then last night my mom and I were watching a show called "who do you think you are". its a show about celebrities who find their genealogical roots and stories. Anyway, last nights episode was Gwenyth Paltrow and she was researching her great grandmother because her grandfather and family had said horrible things about her. Anyway, through the course of her research she discovered that her great grandmother, who had once been ambitious- had been kicked out of college the same year her mother and brother had died of illness. Then she married and her 3 yr old girl was run over by a wagon just 3 weeks before she delivered another baby- The woman was probably suffering from depression and her family didn't understand and resented her their whole lives. Why do I tell you this? because I think we all do that to some extent- we are too quick to judge those around us without knowing the circumstances that make us each who we are. We sit back, without any knowledge of an other's trials or maybe we think we do know and understand everything (but we probably don't since we can never feel what another feels) and conclude that they are mean spirited, arrogant, unforgiving, weird, a hermit, etc....when perhaps we should just be kind and reserve judgment. In this particular case- two generations were submerged in bitterness and resentment because no one bothered to look a little deeper- they were too focused on their own wounds to consider that someone else may be hurting as well. Then tonight my niece played the video of Susan Boyle singing "I dreamed a dream" click here I've seen it before but in light of my thoughts this week I was touched by it again. No one expected her to sing well because she wasn't a beautiful woman and yet- the talent she had inside of her was incredible. I know this is sappy but I really am amazed by the talents the people in my life posses- and I'm not just talking about performance talents- I'm also talking about the talent of patience, to love others, to withhold judgement, the talent for listening and understanding others. I am talking about the talent for sharing the gospel and speaking with the spirit I am talking about all those talents which are so often overlooked by the world. I have been overwhelmed this week by the worth of those around me and so grateful that they have been placed as examples in my life. I am so grateful for the Atonement of Jesus Christ- that when I do fall short and pass judgement too quickly on others I can be forgiven, that each of us can through that atonement rise again and continue on our path to become someone great- maybe not in the eyes of the world- but in the eyes of God and all those whose lives we touch and improve. I pray that each of us remembers who we are- beloved children of God. A God who knows us each by name and cares what we become. I pray that after we remember who we are- that we will also remember the same about the people around us. "the worth of souls is great in the sight of God" - that includes strangers, friends, family, and ourselves.