When judgement backfires - a post about gold fairy dust and multicoloured jelly.

While in Singapore over the Christmas holidays, my family and I visited a Buddhist temple. Now, I've heard it said that once you've seen one Buddhist temple, you've pretty much seen them all. But this one was different - it stood out. This one held a tooth relic of Buddha, and various other relics too.

It's a warm afternoon, the sky is darkening with the threat of rain and we walk into the temple - intrigued at what it might hold. We watch as the monks chant and wonder where they fit in the time to breathe. We take time to read about the life of Buddha, and read all about 'enlightenment' and I am still just as clueless as I was when I first walked in. Then we walk through the part of the temple where Buddha's tongue, heart, liver, kidney, big & small intestine, brain and blood relics are kept. Might I add that his blood resembles gold fairy dust and his brain matter is multicoloured balls of jelly. Not to be disrespectful, but the main thought crossing my mind and lips were 'How can people actually believe this?!'. And then we get to the part where his tooth relic is held. I couldn't hold the laughter in. If that tooth could fit inside a human beings mouth, then Buddha must have had a mighty large head! It was huge! 

I would like to say that my thoughts and heart were saddened by this, and that I was truly heart-broken for the people following this religion. And while yes, it is heart-breaking watching young children make their offerings and seeing the lies in these people's lives, my heart was full of judgement. I could not, for the life of me, understand how anyone found truth in this. How anyone could worship this. My heart did not soften.

Then, a few weeks ago, I was convicted. I do the same thing, every day. I try to find truth in something other than God. I look for satisfaction in the work I am doing rather than the God I am serving. I look for comfort from friends and family instead of looking upwards. I look for joy in a funny film instead of what He has done for me. I look for acceptance and control instead of humility and trust. I stood judging and condemning those who look to false gods when my life is full of them. 

He reminds me that 'Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved'.