Lie or Lens?

I was listening to Steven Furtick’s sermon “It’s going to happen here”. It was very thought provoking.

https://youtu.be/0rUxFlIdZMk?si=pTzAsDeVYjDkNi1j

If someone doesn’t smile at you/be polite to you/drive considerate around you/reach out to you, consider this:

1. They are not having a good day
2. Maybe they just had an argument with someone
3. Maybe there are going to visit someone who is dying
4. Maybe they are addicted to something and going through withdraw
5. Perhaps they just lost their parent
6. Who knows if they have enough money to pay for rent, medicine or food
7. They just got a call with bad news
8. They are estranged from a family member
9. They have a mental illness
10. Childhood trauma affects how they react to the world
11. Maybe they don’t feel good
12. Perhaps a doctor just called them and told them bad news
13. Maybe they are suicidal
14. Maybe they are just really focused on something and not paying attention

Now consider this, if someone does smile at you: any of the above could still be the case.

Is it a lie, or a lens which people see their life through? With a little more thought, you can decide how you come off to people. You can also give people more grace.