Multitude Monday

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Haughty eyes.  Pointing fingers.  Self-righteousness.

 It's so easy to feel this when others sin. We feel morally superior to others.  When we do feel guilt for our own sin, we justify our own unrighteousness by statements such as, "At least I'm not as bad as those people."  "I messed up, but if you hadn't pushed my buttons..."  

 Dan just finished preaching through the book of Job.  It's interesting that God never gives Job any answers to the evil that befell him.  Job and his friends never know why such misfortune fell on Job's life.  His friends are very good at speculating that it must be because Job committed some sin.   It's also interesting that they never once look at their own hearts.  They are too busy pointing out all the things Job must have done wrong.

  “The heart is more deceitful than anything else and mortally sick. Who can fathom it?" ~ Jeremiah 17:9

As Dan suggested yesterday, perhaps one of the reasons God never gives any answers is because he knows our hearts can't handle it.  We feel righteous.  We think we know all the answers.  Yet, our hearts are ill.  We twist and turn things and put a spin on our sin.  The moment we get answers, we try to become like God.  

We know and so believe we are powerful.  Powerful enough to give people pat answers to their struggles.  Powerful enough to think we understand why bad things happen.  Knowledgeable enough to play at being God.

I fall into that trap.  My heart is sick.  I can become self-righteous in a moment.  I know that I have the answers to why someone is in the position they are in.

Sickness.  And the only one who can cure it is the Lord.  I need to decrease so He can increase.  I need to get my eyes off others and put it on Jesus.  When I'm busy looking at other people's sin, I can't see my own.

My desire is to be so in tune to the Lord that I don't have time or energy to worry about others' lacking.  After all, when all is said and done, the Lord is going to ask me about my life and the things I did.

Today I'm thankful for blessings #1341-1356.

 ♥ Emily feeling better.
♥ Beautiful days.

 ♥ A daughter helping.
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 ♥ Long sleep.
♥ Seeing an old story a new way.

♥ An opportunity for Thanksgiving with family we never see.
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 ♥ Cousins reunited.
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 ♥ Lights shining through night-time windows.
♥ Opening my fist and letting go.

 ♥  Twinkling Christmas lights.
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 ♥ Hearing that teens are praying together.
♥ Impish boys at church.
♥ Christmas music.

 ♥ Newborn babies (They were so cute as they all lined up to hold this little one).
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 ♥ Discovering new truths.

 And finally...

 ♥ A sick heart revealed.

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