Unshakable Faith
Day 44:Departing From The Lord
1. Have there been times when you did not heed the Lord, and it resulted in your falling even further into sin?
I remember as a small child, I was jealous that my older sister who was already in school, got to take money to school to buy a new book from the book fair. I thought I should be able to go to school, and I thought I should be able to get a new book too. So I came up with a plan, I stole my sister's money, and I hid it! I thought for sure she would miss out on the book fair and of course it would make everything better! But not only did my jealousy lead to stealing, I then had to lie about it, and next thing I know, my perfect plan didn't seem so perfect anymore. My sister was in tears, and I hated to see anyone cry. My mom was very upset, which also really bothered me. And I felt this horrible sense of guilt. The story ends with my telling the truth, crying a lot, and getting in big trouble!
See even as little kids we have a God given gift called a conscience. I may have only been 4 years old, but I knew my actions were wrong and I chose to do them anyway. And those choices led to feelings of guilt, especially knowing that my actions didn't make Jesus happy, . As adults we tend to act the same way. You would think we would grow up a little and realize that it's not a good idea. But alas, we fail over and over again. When we do make mistakes the best thing we can do is, repent and start making good choices...do not let one bad choice cause you to make many many more bad choices to try to cover it up. This strategy never works, two bad choices never make a good!
2. Have you ever felt "out from the presence of the Lord"?
There have been times when I knew I was not as close to the Lord as I should have been, but I have never felt as if I was completely out of His presence...He has always been faithful to continually stay by me and guide me, even when I was not being perfectly obedient.
3. Why does it seem so much easier to blame someone else and attack them instead of dealing with your own problems?
Our sinful nature causes us to be prideful, we love to see other's faults, and hate to see our own, so we do everything in our power to avoid it...blaming others is the easiest way. If we were righteous like God, as we were created to be, we wouldn't fall into the blame game as often. But since the fall of man, sin has caused a separation of man from God, and we tend to be evil, and more like satan than like Jesus. This is why we must spend time studying God's Word and spend time in God's presence everyday, it is the only way we will become more like Jesus!
