Don't Blame God

(Prov 19:3 GNB) Some people ruin themselves by their own stupid actions and then blame the LORD.


Here Solomon gives us a lesson in personal responsibility. Too many people, believers included, make poor decisions and then say things like, "God, why did you let this happen to me?" or even worse, "God, why did you DO this to me?" If we would be honest with ourselves, we would admit that many times the reason why we experience many of things we do is because of the person in the mirror.

The Message Bible paraphrase of this verse reads: "People ruin their lives by their own stupidity, so why does GOD always get blamed?" At the end of the day this boils down to the system of laws and principles - like sowing and reaping, cause and effect, and the free will of humans - created by God, that governs the earth. Not only WILL we all be judged eventually (ultimate judgment), but our actions are also being judged regularly and we either reap blessing or cursing accordingly.

So if you don't like the harvest you are reaping, check the seed you are sowing. We are where we are because of the decisions we have made. This means we cannot blame God and we should not blame others.

A good example of this is Adam. Adam had:

Purpose: God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden and He gave him the assignment to work and cultivate it. Adam had purposeful and meaningful work. He had to learn to cultivate the garden before he could cultivate the woman.

Provision: God made sure all Adam's needs were met. Adam's only need to this point was food and God gave him an entire garden (more like a forest) of fruit bearing trees to eat from. Four streams fed the garden so Adam's provision was secure.

Parameters: Provision is dangerous without parameters. God told Adam that he could eat from every tree except one. This parameter also gave Adam the power of choice. Right or wrong, good or bad, the choice was going to be his to make.

Power: With everything in place, the Lord brought Adam all the beasts of the field and birds of the air and God let Adam "choose" whatever he was going to name them. Whatever he named them that would be their name. In other words, God gave Adam the power to define.

Partnership: After Adam started naming the animals he developed another need; a need for a partner. He was all-alone. God made Eve from out of Adam and brought her to Adam. Adam then had both a wonderful relationship with God and a thriving relationship with another human.

By the end of Genesis 2 Adam had everything he could ever need. He was extremely blessed. There was nothing missing, nothing broken in Adam's life. This was the "good life" and it was God's will. It was NOT God's will that Adam get kicked out of the garden, but Adam could not leave well enough alone. He violated the ONE LAW he could not break and when God asked him about it he said, "It was the woman You gave me!" What was Adam doing? He was blaming the woman. The woman (Eve) turned around and blamed the serpent. At the end of the day they both got kicked out of the garden and they had no one to really blame but themselves!

So what does this mean to you? It means that you must take accountability and responsibility for your actions. Ralph Waldo Emerson said: "Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect." What seed will you sow today?

Father, I now realize how important my actions are. I know that while the earth remains, seedtime and harvest will not cease. You will see to it that I reap whatever I sow. Therefore, I declare, by faith, that I will sow seeds of righteousness, mercy, truth, love, peace, harmony, friendship, and finances; and as I do I shall reap a corresponding harvest. Furthermore, I won't blame You when I make poor decisions and get poor results. From this day forward I seek to fulfill my part in what You desire to do in my life. I will cooperate WITH You, so You can freely operate IN and THROUGH me! In Jesus' name. Amen!