Guest post with Hannah Bryant

Hey there! Today we have another fun little guest post from the lovely and talented Hannah Bryant. She was with us back in November, and she's back with some wise words to share with you. Won't you give her a bit of blog love?

I’ve done it, you’ve done it and it’s been done to us. Judging.

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Matthew 7:1-2

I had a large decision to make in my life and I literally spent months praying, seeking God, journaling, fasting, digesting scripture and having others unbeknownst to them affirming my decision. 

So when I came to the point of jumping out in faith, I felt I was in the right place and doing the right thing according to His plan for my life.

Someone had heard about the choice I had made through the grapevine and decided to write a very lengthy email about what they had heard. The language was direct as they wrote “I was outside the will of God and He will take His anointing off me.” They expressed disappointment and used passed information about me, against me.

Now I am very, very open, to having people speak into my life, to coach and refine me as I want to always be changing and growing in Jesus, but I was slightly baffled by this as I hadn’t spoken to this person in over twelve months. They didn’t ask a single question about my decision but were happy to shoot bullets into my heart. The only reply I could give at that point was to write “Thanks for your thoughts. Bless you.” That was it. 

I have also been that person shooting the judgement. So I know that I had to apply grace to this person, forgive, ask myself some hard questions, revisit motives, restore inaccuracy with Godly truth and move on…I have.

A lot of the time, we make judgements on one another without having the whole story. We fill in blanks with limited information, make assumptions and place our own bias on a situation.

We look at the outward appearance of a situation and a person which generally brings us to an inaccurate conclusion. 

When we speak into another persons life, we must make sure that we have spent time seeking God, asking for His wisdom and insight, so we can abandon our own opinion to then speak truth. We must have a pure motivation when coaching others, the delivery must be done with kindness, gentleness and with love. We must also ask them loads of questions so we can get insight into their world and hear their story unfold. You just might have your questions answered so you become more gentle and grace filled.

As servant girls, we fight judging others, there is something in our DNA which we must stand against so unity and acceptance surrounds our relationships. This disarms tension and allows our sisters to flourish in their God-given uniqueness and beauty. 

When we decide to become someone else’s judge, by what standard are we making those judgements? 

“Criticism leaves you with the flattering unction that you are a superior person.” (Oswald Chambers Our Upmost For His Highest)

We need to be very careful of our thoughts and words. God sees the heart and knows exactly what’s going on. Judging is dangerous as we all have planks in our own eyes.

A woman who is at rest with herself accepts her position in Christ. She understands there is nothing to prove to onlookers. She knows her strengths and can cheer her sister’s on with a pure heart. She shines brightly as her words are seasoned with kindness, goodness and grace. She is peaceful and can edify others with ease as she is secure in her Fathers love.

 Hannah, her husband & three children are currently living in Ontario Canada and are heading home this December to Sydney Australia to begin Three Rivers Church, a home church movement. Hannah is passionate about teaching women about their uniqueness in Christ and encouraging them to abandon fear in order to live radically for Jesus. You can keep up to date with her at Ashes-to-beauty