Jeremiah
24:1-10
Psalms 31, 35Romans 9:19-33
John 9:1-17
19 You will say to me then, “Why does he
still find fault? For who can resist his will?” 20 But who are
you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why
have you made me like this?” 21 Has the potter no right over
the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another
for dishonorable use? 22 What if God, desiring to show his
wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of
wrath prepared for destruction, 23 in order to make known the
riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for
glory. Romans 9:19-23
Excuses,
Excuses:
The
verses above are clear enough. I reread
them several times in shock. Seriously?
But there it is:
God
doesn't want to hear it. No
excuses. None of that "You made me
this way" stuff that we are so good at - rationalizing and explaining away
our falling short of His will. He has
expectations of us - we are to make known the riches of His glory, we don't get
to say "Naw, I'm not strong enough, brave enough, tall enough, smart
enough." He is not making
allowances. We're in good company -
Moses didn't get to use his speech impediment, Jonah his cowardice or Paul his
disgust for the new church to explain away their own plans.
As
a parent I have heard it all, every excuse under the sun. And they sometimes work. I find that my "mercy" is couched
in our own adequacies. I am more lenient
to weaknesses I see in myself. My
husband tolerates things I don't and vice versa. Human judgment is weak and
flawed. He who has no weaknesses doesn't
play that way.
So
now that I have failed to meet His standards, what’s next for me? Wait - there's more!
30 What shall we say, then?
That Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained it, that is, a
righteousness that is by faith; 31 but that Israel who pursued a law that would
lead to righteousness did not succeed in reaching that law. 32 Why? Because
they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were based on works. They have
stumbled over the stumbling stone, 33
We
can't do it alone - and we don't need to.
The people who succeed in His path don't do it by their own smarts but
by Faith. Know our weakness and then
quit worrying - let go, trust Him. He
will use us - weaknesses and all.
Of
course there's more:
13 No temptation has
overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will
not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he
will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. 1 Corinthians 10:13
We
can do it! He promises us this. Follow
the path of righteousness, know and do His will. Our Father, who made us and
knows us will not leave us alone. He will never push us too far and will never
leave us alone. And if we fall short? We
fail, we are betrayed by our weakness? No
excuses but forgiveness and so much love.
Lisa Thomas