“The devil made me do
it,” was a phrase made famous by the great comedian Flip Wilson.
The phrase was funny when he said it
but it takes on all too much reality in our world today.
We make many excuses to blame our
failures or actions on someone else.
In the book, “How Could You Do
That?!”, Laura Schlessinger deals with the issue of
victimization;
the tendency to cast blame outside yourself for your weaknesses.
She said, “Call me a heretic, but I
believe that even with bad stuff in your past, you have choices.
Everyone must overcome something.
That simply is life.
Acknowledging that you are responsible
for messing up your own life gives you the power to change things.”
In his INJOY Life Club
leadership lesson, “Winning Is An Inside Job,” John Maxwell quoted
some research done with prisoners at a major prison.
The researcher tried to determine
exactly what led to these inmates committing their crimes.
EVERY prisoner claimed to be innocent,
to have been framed.
The researcher determined that he
could not find a larger group of innocent people anywhere!
These prisoners could not bring
themselves to admit their failures.
Admitting fault is the first step
toward turning your life around.
Would you like to change something about your life? Taking
responsibility for your part in being where you are now can help you
confess faults to the ultimate change agent, God himself. A
relationship with Him begins with confession. 1
John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and
will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
Admitting your shortcomings can clear the way for you to move your
life forward in a new direction.
Common Sense Application
1.
Title a blank piece of paper,
“Personal Life.”
Confess in writing those sins or
weaknesses that seem to be hurting your life, relationships,
finances, habits, etc.
Take responsibility for those things
and ask God to help make the changes necessary.
2.
Title a second page, “Career.”
List the bad choices, lack of skill,
lack of effort, and sin associated with limiting your career.
Ask God to forgive the sin and make a
commitment to improve the quality of your work.
Make plans to acquire the experience
and training necessary to move forward in your career.
3.
Title a third page, “Spiritual
Relationship.”
List those things, sins and weaknesses
that seem to distance you from God.
Confess that only He can restore you
to full fellowship with Him and ask Him to do that.
Deal honestly with the spiritual
issues between you and God and between you and others.
4. Keep track of the progress
in all three areas and celebrate victories with a trusted friend.
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