B E H I N D / T H E / B A R

The young man was standing on a sidewalk of a very busy street.  He was scrolling through posts on his cellphone oblivious to the cars speeding past.  From a distance another man could see the young man teetering on the edge of the sidewalk.  It appeared inevitable that at any minute the young man would step out into the road, and in an effort to warn him of impending danger the man yelled out “LOOK OUT, YOU’RE GOING TO GET HIT BY A CAR!!!!!!” A lady stood by the man and looked at him with shocking condemnation.  “Who do you think you are to yell at that guy?”  “He has a right to walk on the sidewalk, or step off the sidewalk if he wants to!!!”  “You’re so judgmental!  You sound so angry yelling at him!” “You don’t even know for sure that he’s going to get hit by a car, what’s your problem?”   “I’m just trying to warn him.” The man replied.  Unaffected, the woman began to stir up other people close by, giving very little attention to the imminent danger rushing by the oblivious young man.  Other’s began to vilify the man who continued to try warn the young guy still  oblivious to the traffic or the man yelling at him.  The angry shouts of the crowd, using words like “Judgmental,” “closed minded,” “imposing” drowned out the cries of the man trying to warn the young man.  The result was tragic and costly. Declaring truth, warning others of impending danger, in a spirit of love and concern isn’t necessarily an act of judgmental behavior, closed mindedness, or imposing personal moral views on someone else.  If done in the right spirit, its the most loving thing a person could do. Be careful not to confuse declaring truth out of loving concern as an act of hatred, judgment and bigotry.