Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults— unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. [Matthew 7:1-2 (MSG)]

Father, thank you for the reminder that the only condemning I should be doing is of me, not of my brothers and sisters. May I always remember that old phrase, “People who live in glass houses, shouldn’t throw stones!” Keep me from a critical frame of mind so I always think the best of others, as I hope they do of me.

What we really want is to evaluate those around us with a divine justice, while we want them to evaluate us with a divine compassion. [From “Pieces of Eight” by Sidney Harris]

It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor. [Matthew 7:3-5 (MSG)]