A little too enthusiastic?

Have you ever blamed someone else for something you really should have taken responsibility for? It is like you know you initiated the matter, but then it escalated out of control, and you don't want to step up to take responsibility. Have you ever done this with God? We forget that he knows the intention of our hearts and sees the foolishness of our actions, but it as though we want to shift the blame to him. It is that person you brought into my life, God. It was because you didn't intervene sooner, God. It was that circumstance, God. Anything or anyone other than us - even God - is to blame. People ruin their OWN lives by their OWN foolishness, but that doesn't give them the privilege to blame God or others for THEIR foolishness.

Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good; haste makes mistakes. People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the Lord. (Proverbs 19:2-3)

Do you know what 'enthusiasm without knowledge' really is? It is doing, THEN thinking things through! We might not realize it, but when we jump at this opportunity or that one, THEN think about the decisions we have made, it could be we are already reaping the consequences for the 'wrong choice'. I don't take a lot of time to make a grocery list. I just find the items we need and purchase them. I get a few things that look good in the ad and save a little money. When I buy a car, that is an entirely different matter. I take time to research the basic price, package price, taxes, fees, and cost of insurance. I might look a bit 'wishy-washy' by taking so much time to purchase the vehicle, but I have made hasty decisions in purchasing one before and regretted all the repairs I had to put into it. Haste isn't our best friend - it almost brings chaos and unnecessary complications into our lives.

I take responsibility for my decisions rather than blaming God or others for my 'hasty choices'. It isn't always the easiest thing, but I know it is the right thing to do. My life got way too complicated by MY compromises, not God's. My relationships got messed up by MY choices because of my actions, not God's. Did anyone else play a part? Maybe, but when we take responsibility for our actions, listening to what God tells us led to the chaos or consequences, and then learn from those 'hasty decisions', we are less likely to make them again. Don't blame others when at least some of the blame belongs to you. Don't accuse God of 'allowing' you to make mistakes when you clearly didn't consult him in the matter. Own up to those mistakes, allow correction to come, and then take note of how to avoid them in the future. You are doing yourself a great favor when you do! Just sayin!