| Good morning everyone, Our theme for this month: “Deep Discipleship” Our Bible verse for today: “For each person will have to carry his own load.” Galatians 6:5 (CSB) Our thought for today: “Take personal responsibility” In my opinion, one of the glaring weaknesses in America today is a lack of personal responsibility. This weakness manifests itself in a multitude of ways, from apathy and indifference, to shirking our duties, to relying on others to do what we should be doing for ourselves, to a widespread sense of entitlement, and much more. But perhaps the most common example of evading personal responsibility is in the area of excuse-making and blaming others. Christians do this too. Far too many Christians excuse their own shortcomings and failures and seek instead to shift the blame for their actions to other people and to circumstances. They claim that it is the other person’s fault that they lost their temper; or it was the other person’s actions that forced them to make the choice they made; or the other person this, and the other person that; these circumstances; that reason; et cetera, et cetera, “But it’s not my fault.” I have mentioned before that one of my favorite inspirational books is “The Traveler’s Gift: Seven Decisions that Determine Personal Success” by Andy Andrews. It’s all about assuming full personal responsibility for our own lives. The main character is a young man named David Ponder who is taken by God, in a dream, on a trip through time. At each stop in history, he encounters a historical figure who teaches him an important life-lesson. At one stop David encounters President Harry Truman. What Truman teaches David is that “The buck stops here. I am personally responsible for my own life.” The ultimate shape of anyone’s life is largely determined by the choices they make. Therefore, the responsibility for your circumstances is yours. You are where you are in life largely because of the choices you have made. David’s discussion with Harry Truman helped him realize that if he was going to succeed in life, he had to take full responsibility for his actions. The same is true for all of us. We have to own our past; accept responsibility for the present; and make good choices that will move us into the future. Please don’t blame others. It’s your life; it’s your responsibility. We are each responsible for ourselves and for our choices. And the best, most helpful decision any of us can make, is to stay close to Jesus in deep discipleship. No other action we take will have a more profound positive impact on us and on those around us. As we have already learned in this series, your own life will be better and you will also be a blessing to everyone around you when you are walking closely with Jesus. God bless, Pastor Jim (If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00, in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville |
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