“…they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind…” (Hosea 8:7 BSB abbreviated)
“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that will he also reap.” (Galatians 6:7 NKJV)
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23 NKJV)
It seems like when it comes to learning life lessons from the things I do my mind has either selective, or skewed, memory issues. I stated in a previous post that if experience was really the best teacher (especially in the areas in which I’ve blown it) I would be a genius. The trouble is that it takes very little time for our minds to reshape history to suit our present situation for good or bad. Hence, the abundance of “repeated offenders,” of which I have been chief.
Einstein was quoted as saying, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Boy have I tested and proven that to be true. It seems like if I was bitten twice by the same dog, I would leave it alone. But I guess that common sense is not so common. We humans seem to continue to do our own thing in opposition to the design of our Creator, even to our own harm.
There is a fine line between faith and foolishness. Speaking to the protection that the Lord would grant His disciples as they risked their well being to carry out His commission, Mark wrote in his Gospel, “they will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t harm them.” (Mark 16:18 NLT) I would consider it faith to risk danger in a worthwhile pursuit and foolishness to go looking for trouble. I am fully persuaded that a key to living in faith rather than foolishness is to learn from the experience of someone else who has “been there and done that” (the Bible is full of wise counsel, and the examples of those from whom we can learn huge life lessons). However, if I am not able (or willing) to do that, at least learn from the first experience and stop making the same mistake over and over again deceiving myself that this time a “wrong” will somehow become a “right.” My dad told me more than once, “Eric, you can’t sow wild oats all week long and then pray for a crop failure on Sunday.”
I am writing this on Mothers Day, and as I am writing I can hear my mom’s words echoing in my head as she confronted me over something foolish that I had just done, “Eric Randall Raby (oh no, not the full name, I’m in trouble for sure), you need to know, ignorance can be educated, but stupid sticks for life. There is a fine line between the two and you are flirting with it.” I think you probably get the point. I miss you mom, and can”t wait to see you in Glory one of these days. Let’s learn together…
Eric’s Life Lesson # 3: “Stop tryin’ to pet the dog that bit ya!”