Judgment-Free Challenge

When I got serious about walking in integrity with my spiritual path, the most difficult habit for me to release was judgment of others.  I frequently had thoughts about what others should and shouldn’t be doing, and I freely shared them with all who would listen.  These thoughts and comments came to me just as quickly as bodily reflexes; they were so deeply ingrained in me.

The spiritual teachers that were sent to me along the journey all spoke of non-judgment, but I just didn’t see how I was going to be able to do it.  I agreed it was an ideal to strive for but, after observing my thoughts and comments for about a week, the magnitude of my judging ways really set in.  Just thinking about releasing all of them seemed like something that would take a lifetime (or many lifetimes).

Instead of allowing myself to give up, or to drag out the process by releasing judgment one thing at a time, I pushed myself to go “cold turkey.”  I declared my space a judgment-free zone.  I did not set a time limit, as with a fasting period, because I never wanted to return to my old ways.  This was not a temporary feel-good-for-a-moment kind of change; I was making the commitment to be judgment-free for life.  I didn’t know how it was going to happen, but I prayed about it and believed it would be done.

I had no idea how good it would feel to release my judgment of others.  The love and compassion that rose up in me for all people is indescribable.   In murderers, I began to see the mental patterns that may have pushed them to the limit.  In those with extreme political views, I began to see the life circumstances that may have led to the forming of their opinions.  And so on.

I truly learned my lesson.  In order to feel peace within, you must extend peace without.  It is impossible to be at peace while judging and condemning others.  It sounds so simple, and I’m sure there’s someone reading who is thinking something like, “Yeah, yeah, yeah…do unto others as you would have them do unto you…I already know that.”  I thought I knew it too, but my challenge was not in the knowing it was in the doing.

So, how did I move from knowing to doing?  It was certainly trial and error for me in the beginning, but then I read the following passage in A Course in Miracles, and something in me shifted.  It really sunk in that I am in no position whatsoever to judge anyone.  There is only One who can see all that has ever been and all that ever will be.  I have no idea how each person’s life story is supposed to unfold, and so I now refrain from judgment.  I may comment about an occurrence in the world, but it is with compassion and love instead of gossip and making others wrong.

“Judgment in the usual sense is impossible. This is not an opinion but a fact. In order to judge anything rightly, one would have to be fully aware of an inconceivably wide range of things; past, present and to come. One would have to recognize in advance all the effects of his judgments on everyone and everything involved in them in any way. And one would have to be certain there is no distortion in his perception, so that his judgment would be wholly fair to everyone on whom it rests now and in the future. Who is in a position to do this? Who except in grandiose fantasies would claim this for himself?

Remember how many times you thought you knew all the “facts” you needed for judgment, and how wrong you were! Is there anyone who has not had this experience? Would you know how many times you merely thought you were right, without ever realizing you were wrong? Why would you choose such an arbitrary basis for decision making? Wisdom is not judgment; it is the relinquishment of judgment. Make then but one more judgment. It is this: There is Someone with you Whose judgment is perfect. He does know all the facts; past, present and to come. He does know all the effects of His judgment on everyone and everything involved in any way. And He is wholly fair to everyone, for there is no distortion in His perception.” ~A Course in Miracles

So, I challenge anyone who is reading this and is serious about reconnecting to their natural state of peace to declare that from this day forward your space is judgment-free.  Pray for the Spirit to assist you in the release of all judgment from your words, thoughts, and actions.  Try it, and see what shifts for you in your day-to-day experience.  I guarantee that, if you really do it, you will be amazed by the Beauty that shows up in places you once thought were barren.

I look forward to hearing about the shifts you experience as you release judgment from your life!

Keep shining!

~Kandace

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Kandace Jones
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BLOG: http://kandacejones.wordpress.com
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About the Author: Kandace Jones

I used to live life shackled by fear, doubt, and worry. I put on a happy face while navigating my day-to-day duties, but I was emotionally drained, stressed, and unhappy. When I hit rock bottom, and was diagnosed with depression and anxiety, I was determined to live life differently. I knew there had to be another way. Out of that determination, and guidance from Spirit, the "Living in the Light" blog was born. It documents my spiritual journey out of the darkness and into the Light. After nine months of publicly sharing my journey, and consciously releasing my attachment to the ego, I experienced a powerful spiritual awakening. I went from living in fear, doubt, worry, and stress to complete inner peace. My greatest passion has become assisting others on their own journey to inner peace. My spiritual memoir, From Stress to Peace: An Intimate Journal on the Journey from Living in Darkness to Living in the Light, is available now on Amazon and BN.com. Click the tabs at the top of the page to learn more about the From Stress to Peace 21-Day Challenge, Living in the Light Retreats, 1:1 sessions, and the Living in the Light Community - all of which are designed to support your journey to inner peace. I appreciate you taking the time to visit the blog and look forward to supporting you in any way I can!