SUFFERING THE CONSEQUENCES One of the hardest realities for some to learn is that there are consequences to our actions. Whatever we do either affects us or others and usually both. We begin teaching our children at an early age, "don't hit, bite, etc. because that hurts the other person. We are teaching them that there are consequences to others because of our actions. We teach them to avoid fires and hot surfaces, because the consequences are that we hurt ourselves. Some however are slow to learn those lessons and many, as we say, "have to learn the hard way" through suffering the consequences of our actions. I read a story the other day, which at first seemed cute, but as the message sinks in it teaches a much deeper lesson. Little Emily, the minister's daughter, ran into the house, crying as though her heart would break. "What's wrong, dear?" asked her father. "My dolly, my dolly! Billy broke it!" she sobbed. "How did he break it, Emily?" her father asked. To which she replied, "I hit him over the head with it." Consequences! Far too often just like that little girl we tend to blame someone else for something that is a direct result of our decisions or actions. Job says in Job 4:8, "My experience shows that those who plant trouble and cultivate evil will harvest the same". While Hosea says in Hosea 10:12, "I said, 'Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of my love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the LORD, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you.'" We deal with consequences daily in our lives, either because of our actions or because of the actions of others. The question with which we are left, perhaps is, "how do we react when our dolly is broken and on whom do we place the blame"? We tend to face problems in life and ask, "Why did God do this to me?" when in reality it is a result of our choices, the choices others made or maybe even a result of our life style (again a matter of choices). God will never do anything to hurt you and he will never desert you in times of trouble. The Psalmist writes in Psalms 62:6-7, "He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor come from God alone. He is my refuge, a rock where no enemy can reach me." Jeremiah wrote in Jeremiah 6:16, "So now the LORD says, "Stop right where you are! Look for the old, godly way, and walk in it. Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls".
posted by Theresa @ 9:58 AM
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