"Otherwise, you may say in your heart, 'My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.' "But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth" Deut 8:17-18
From our earliest days on earth, we are taught self sufficiency and self reliance. We are taught, that if we would just work hard, any reward and success can be ours. "No one is going to give you anything. You have to get out there and make it for yourself," said our own parents. Then we as parents share the same advice and direction with our children.
What is missing from this mentality is the involvement of God. In His admonishment to the people of Israel, He reminds them to, "Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments and His ordinances and His statutes which I am commanding you today; otherwise, when you have eaten and are satisfied, and have built good houses and lived in them, and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and gold multiply, and all that you have multiplies, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery." Deut 8:11-14
Beloved, in this "pull yourself up by your own bootstraps" world, we must remember who gave us the boots and the straps as well as who gave us the strength and the know how to pull ourselves up. God is our benefactor. He is the provider of all things. We are merely the blessed recipients of His grace and mercy. Let us always remember this. Let us infuse these facts into the teaching we give our children so that they will know from where their help comes.
Loving Like Jesus,
Lee
No comments:
Post a Comment