Daily Devotional for Thursday March 14, 2002

Being Accountable

(Romans 14:12; Ezekiel 18:20)

The sad story of the Houston mother who drowned her 5 children is the latest high profile example of people trying not to be held accountable for their actions. We get some of the best examples of this through the criminal justice system. Every defendant has an excuse, a reason why they should not be punished for the choices that they made. This actually started in the Garden of Eden right after man sinned. Eve blamed her sin on the serpent, Adam blamed his sin on Eve, and ever since we have tried to make excuses for our sinful choices. That mindset is found in our everyday lives. When people make poor choices, rather then admit their mistake, they will try to make excuses for doing what they did.

The lesson today my friend is that when we make a mistake, when we make a bad choice, when we sin, ADMIT IT. First of all, we can't fool God. He knows our heart. That is why in 1 John 1:9 it says, "IF WE CONFESS OUR SINS." God is not looking for excuses, He is looking for honesty. He is looking for us to admit that we sinned. The verse goes on to say that AFTER we confess our sins, He will forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Those who reject God, reject Jesus Christ as their Lord, are the best at blaming others. They say that I am not a Christian because: they are all hypocrites, Jim Bakker was a fraud, all I have to do is be a good person, the Bible is a book of nice stories, all they care about is money, there is no God, and on . . and on . . and on the excuses go. The sad fact for these people is, the moment we die we will be standing before God. At that moment, God will not be interested in hearing any excuses. The choice to accept or reject Christ is one that we each have to make in this life, and for those who reject Him, they will not be able to blame anyone. God WILL hold them personally accountable for their choice.

I love you and care about you so much. The word today is a simple one. Quit blaming others, quit finding excuses when you fail. Accept personal responsibility for your mistakes, and move forward. You can't go back and live life over. In some cases there may be consequences for the poor choices you have made. Know that as you accept responsibility, God will strengthen you and help you to move beyond your poor choices and move forward. Sadly, many spend their life blaming others for this event, or that situation. They live in the past, wasting this precious gift God has given to us called life. The biggest reason to accept responsibly is so that you can move beyond your poor choice and be productive in serving God. After all, that is why we are all here, to serve and glorify Him with our lives. That starts with us being accountable for our actions.