I will be working on the format and layout of the blog over the next few days so get ready for some changes:-)
(This might be because I need to clean out a storage room in my house and I am avoiding it, but whatever...)
I thought I should let you know so you're not like, "Whaaa????" when you stopped by:-)
But I would love your help!!
What are the places you love to go online?? I want to have a great resource list for you! It's time for a summertime makeover:-)
~Sarah~
Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. 1 Tim. 4:12
Monday, June 16, 2014
Thursday, June 05, 2014
Does God Owe Me?
The letter almost stopped my heart. Someone else’s
choice was about to cost me, or at least it looked that way. I responded (okay,
reacted) with the usual panic and ranting before taking a breath, doing a
little research, and finding a possible way out of this unfair situation. In
the process, I made an interesting discovery about myself. It came out while
updating a friend on the saga.
“What really upsets me is that I try very hard to be
responsible and do the right thing. And now I might suffer the consequences of
someone else’s irresponsibility. It just doesn’t seem fair.” I admitted that
I’d been praying along those lines, you know, in case God was unaware of my
flawless behavior record.
Next thing I knew we were having a frank discussion
about our tendency to approach God as if He owes us.
I’ve
been through a hard time and am overdue for a windfall of blessings.
I
faced a painful process with integrity, even when tempted to do otherwise, therefore
God should grant me favor in pretty much every area from now on.
I
follow the rules; I deserve to be rewarded for that.
I
am careful with my money, so my bank account should be considered sacred, never
to be touched by the trials of life.
Yet, nowhere in the Bible could we find evidence
that any of the above warranted some kind of divine payback. Yes, God rewards
faithfulness, but He doesn’t guarantee that we will never suffer for someone
else’s choices or have life fall apart after doing each step correctly.
Job, a righteous man, lost everything.
Jesus was perfect and paid the ultimate price for
other people’s sins.
“God owes us nothing,” my friend said.
And I had to agree. I could look back on many
blessings that came after standing strong when it was difficult or holding on
to my integrity when it would have been easier not to, but even with that, He
wasn’t obligated to make anything go my way. God did promise one thing though:
no matter what happened, He would take care of me.
What a sobering, humbling thought.
When have you caught yourself approaching God as if
he owed you? How does belonging to Him seeing Him work in your life stir your
desire to do the right thing no matter what?
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