Word-Filled Wednesday ~#149~ Are You Blaming the Lord?

"A man's own folly ruins his life,

yet his heart rages against the LORD."

~Proverbs 19:3

"Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made, His said to the woman, 'Did God really say, "You must not eat from any tree in the garden"? . . . When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it . . . And [God] said, 'Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?'

"The man said, 'The woman You put here with me - she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.'

"The the LORD God said to the woman, 'What is this you have done?'

"The woman said, 'The serpent deceived me, and I ate.'

~Genesis 3:1, 6, 11-13

We can be so willingly blind. We can be so self-aggrandizing. Nothing is EVER our own fault, is it?

What pride, what arrogance.

In so many things ~ shifting the blame can become almost an art form ~ it's not my fault I loose my temper, my father was like this and I'm just like him, it's the way I am and I can't change (truth: I won't change because I don't want to); I didn't mean to steal, it was just there and it was so easy to take (truth: and I wanted it, plant and simple; I'm not sorry I did it, I'm just sorry I got caught); I didn't want to do it, but they dared me (truth: and I didn't want to be the nerd who didn't do it); everyone else is doing it (truth: and it looked like A LOT of fun)!

Our culture has taught many to be people of lies and excuses. So, I suppose my message for this devotion is 1) DON'T DO IT when you KNOW it's wrong. 2) If you fall short of God's will, suck it up, admit it, ask for forgiveness and, if necessary, take the punishment. 3) Stop blaming others for your own bad decisions.

You will gain back your credibility much sooner for your honesty and humility.

 ". . . for ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God . . . " ~Romans 3:23

So, if you are going to follow the crowd, follow the ones who are following Jesus.

Blessings from Ohio . . . Kim<><