Why do we give grace only to people we know?
A colleague was late providing information but I knew she had other big projects going on so I excused it. A neighbor has an outdoor cat that roams in my yard — I ignore it instead of calling animal control because I know her. I ignore my friend’s absentmindedness because I am aware she is struggling with a health issue.
But I wouldn’t be as tolerant if the same situations occurred with people I did not know — even though the same extenuating circumstances could still be present. I need to work on that.
We have no idea what is happening in other people’s lives, just as they can’t know what is going on in ours. Trust that they are doing the best that they can until you have evidence otherwise. You’ll rarely regret giving grace.
