Unlike the Marines, you can’t always go back for a fallen brother that has gone down a path you can’t follow. The tightrope that we walk in our attempts to be better people becomes even more tenuous when you are part of a ministry. Every mistake and decision is magnified and stacked up against the Bible because, let’s be honest, people love to catch Christians in the act of being un-Christian. When Satan goes after a ministry, the easiest way to throw a wrench in the works is to discredit that ministry by using the ‘divide and conquer’ method.
There’s little worse than watching someone receive a blessing and then proceed to act like an insufferable twit because of it. We’re all human and we all fall short of the glory of God so it’s not a question of being perfect. Everyone fails that test. It’s a question of where your heart is and whether or not you really believe God is the complete source of your blessing. The pursuit of happiness and success is a human trait that everyone possesses. But Satan conveniently hides behind the ‘success’ mile marker with his crooked thumb out, ready to hitch a ride with anyone passing by simply because of the fine line that is drawn between Gods will and our own. As was the case with Peter when Jesus called him out onto the water (Matthew 14:25-33), he started to sink as soon as he took his eyes off of Jesus. As soon as anyone starts to believe that they are walking on water through their own power, a trip to the bottom of the lake is assured. Even if you believe God is the source of your success, ‘Ol Scratch will always be there to try and convince you that you deserve to take some credit as well. After all, you’ve earned it…right?
From time to time I’ve picked up ‘Ol Scratch myself. We all have. When you work hard for a goal it’s very easy and natural to want to take credit when that goal is reached without giving God his full due. The response to a blessing is more important than the blessing itself because it’s our response that determines whether or not that age old hitchhiker from Hell gets to grab a ride and steer us down a road we don’t recognize. Satan’s objective is to get us so deep in the weeds that we can’t see the road at all, using our own pride as a weapon to steal our blessing. And pride is like a malfunctioning GPS that sees roads where none exist. Following pride and crediting ourselves for God’s blessings is like blindly following the GPS while cornstalks are bouncing off of the windshield. Being honest with ourselves, realizing the real source of our successes, and giving God all of the credit is the only way to get back on the right road and out of the weeds.
Luke 9:62 “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
Romans 12:3 “Do not think more of yourself than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.”
1 Corinthians 15:10 “but by the grace of God am I what I am, and His grace to me was not without effect. Yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.
