Promise for Today - Yeah, but God...

Into the land they went, and it became theirs. For our forefathers, You made sure even the Canaanites there were powerless. You subdued everything and everyone to their power— land, kings, and people—to do with as they pleased. They overwhelmed strong and secure cities. They overtook fertile, productive land. They claimed well-furnished houses, wells that were already dug, vineyards, olive groves and orchards filled with fruit. They ate their fill. They grew fat. They basked in Your generosity and goodness. Even so, again they chose to defy You.
Nehemiah 9:24-26a The Voice

One would think that a pattern of behavior repeated over and over would become obvious - even to the perpetrator. I know I would sit in disbelief as I read the number of miracles God performed for the people of Israel and how quickly they would forget and turn from following His ways. Unbelievable...

That is, until I saw the same thing in myself. There's something about the Truth that will strike you no matter what language it's spoken in. "They basked in Your generosity and goodness. Even so, again they chose to defy You." Like a video replay, I realized I have OFTEN basked in God's generosity and goodness, and at times, still chose to go my own way when an offense or perceived onslaught kept me from what I wanted to do. 'Yeah, but God - he did this...' 'Yeah, but God, she said...' 'Yeah, but God, I couldn't just let them get away with...' 'Yeah, but God...'

Today I realized the number of times that I did this or I've said that, and yet God has shown me unfathomable mercy on innumerable occasions... "basking in His generosity and goodness." Have you ever done that? 

The truth is that doing it our own way instead of walking in God's way is to defy God. No 'yeah, buts' about it. Forgive us, O God!

Prayer:

Father,
           We pray Your Word - "It was because of Your great mercy that we were not completely annihilated or forsaken. You are a grace-filled and mercy-laden God; Our True God—You who are great, majestic, and awesome, You who always keep Your covenant of loyal love— do not overlook the trouble we are facing here today. This trouble confronts us all: our kings and our princes, our priests and our prophets, our ancestors and all of Your people— From the time of the Assyrian kings until today. You are righteous in all that You have done to us. You have faithfully upheld Your part of the covenant, but we have acted with evil."  Forgive us, O God! Change our hearts. Make them ever thirst only for You. To walk in Your will and way and not our own. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen