Although the Lord sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen. (2 Chronicles 24:19)
When I was in elementary school my brothers and I loved playing in the creek near our house. I remember one snow day when we adventured out, and I really wanted to walk on the ice. My older and wiser brothers informed me that the ice wasn’t strong enough to support me, but I wanted to prove them wrong. So rather than heeding their wisdom, I decided to jump up and down in the center of the creek, and I fell straight through on about jump number two. Thankfully, my stupidity didn’t result in any serious injury or death, but all of the pain I experienced could have been avoided if I had only listened.
It’s bad enough to make wrong decisions in life, but it’s even worse when those wrong decisions could have been avoided if only we had been willing to listen.
If I had simply, out of ignorance, jumped on the ice, then it would have been unfortunate. But I knew better, and I chose to do it anyone. That is true stupidity.
God didn’t send prophets to Judah just for kicks; He sent them to help bring the people back to Him. They had no excuse because they knew the right information; they simply refused to listen to it.
One of life’s greatest defining moments for each us is choosing to listen to the wisdom given to us rather than ignoring it and suffering the consequences. If you choose to avoid God’s path in life and go your own way, then you will suffer for it. You cannot avoid the consequences of evading God’s way. Be careful to listen to Him and open yourself up to Him, and You will experience the life He has for you.
Father, it’s so easy to want to do my own thing and to avoid the paths that You desire for me to walk down. Please give me the humility to surrender my need to have my own way, and let me submit to You.
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