A bumper sticker...

So...I was following today behind a car that had a bumper sticker I didn't really like. I started another blog going off about that bumper sticker and basically a "how dare they" kind of attitude. I was about half way done when I stopped, and just looked at it. I thought why is this so frustrating to me. I didn't understand the "sentiment" or why someone would want to brag about it. I didn't understand why someone would put that on their car. I could never imagine putting that on my car. And I remember sitting in my car thinking maybe it's a sarcastic message. Maybe it's not what they really mean, how could it be? And it's been bugging me all day. Then while I was venting it...I started to think..but what about the person who put that message on their car. What is their perspective? What's happened in their world that made them put that on their car? Maybe it honestly was just funny to them. Maybe it's a true statement in their life. Maybe it's ... well, it could be anything. Without literally getting out of my car and going to the window of that vehicle and asking the driver...I have no clue. I don't know their circumstances. I don't know what they are thinking or what they are dealing with. I don't know why that bumper sticker seemed to make sense to them and be something they needed to put on their car for others to see. And me? What happens to me as I begin to think about it? My hardened judgmental heart switches gears...from frustration and judgement...to compassion and wishing I understood. I've had a couple of situations come up this week that I don't completely understand. I can't wrap my head around them. And in those situations, I hope at least, I've been a little more understanding that then blast I've been putting towards this car and driver this afternoon. Why was I so quick to condemn? Do I do that at other times too? Do I just jump to conclusions? Do I react vs. think? Sometimes. This isn't meant to be a I'm kicking myself kind of thing... just a wake up call and reminder to myself that I'm so in need of being transformed into the likeness of Christ. I soooo want to have His mind. His vision and compassion for others. It may seem like a "little" thing, a bumper sticker...but it was just something God has used in this last hour to remind me how much I need Him.