04/14/26 GOD KNOWS OUR PAIN
This applies to new acquaintances, old friends, and family members.
My heart aches and breaks for the people who reject what I preach and teach, since I am offering them the unsearchable riches of God. The rebellious are satisfied to wallow in their own chaos and corruption. If I don't keep my mind on Jesus, then the disappointment I feel for them would drive me to despair. I must keep my eyes on Jesus, and I must realize that they are totally responsible for themselves. Regardless of how imperfectly and inadequately I present the truth, the Holy Spirit is actually dealing with them. Therefore, the rejection is not a personal affront to me, but rather to God.
It is bad enough when I see someone resist and reject God's deliverance and enablement when it is first offered to them, but it is more disturbing to watch them falter and fail time after time as they continue to harden their hearts and dull their hearing.
It is like watching a terrible car wreck happen in slow motion. It could have been avoided, but their present course is leading to an irreversible and deadly outcome.
I watch as people shut God out of their lives, as they grip tightly to the weights of wickedness that drag them to destruction. I warn folks of the rocky shoreline, the hidden shoals, the changing tides and winds, but they are headed for a shipwreck. It often starts with a mindless drifting, but it becomes a determined action and then a set course.
I call them, but they will not hear. I throw-out the lifeline, but they will not take hold. I sound the alarm and shine the light, but they sail into destruction.
I know I have friends who are pastors, spouses, parents, offspring, siblings, who experience what I am talking about. We all have loved ones who have heard the truth, and have walked in the truth for a while, but then they changed course. It is hard to watch tragedy unfold day by day.
But remember, another person's decision to go the wrong way is not your fault, even if you have failed in some way. And don't allow them to put the blame on you for their own actions. Everyone makes their own choices.
The sinner wants to deflect, even to the point of blaming God. It has been this way since Adam and Eve.
