.. suffering incredible consequences...

Do you not know?

    Have you not heard?

The Lord is the everlasting God,

    the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He will not grow tired or weary,

    and his understanding no one can fathom.

 He gives strength to the weary

    and increases the power of the weak.

Isaiah 40:28-29

reminded today of the great danger of thinking we can do life on our own,
how when we are living the illusion of self-sufficiency, we are going to be brought to our knees by the One who never changes, who is all powerful, in control of all things and just GREAT..

because..

first of all He is a jealous God.. He is the One doing everything and He does deserve to be praised and glorified for it

but also, because when we look to Him and know that He is the only One that helps us, ( and let's face it,  without Him we wouldn't even have the capacity to handle anything on our own )
we receive His joy and His peace, His strength and His grace.. His mercy..

so.. as much as I know all that, it was good to be reminded that running on my own strength and going ahead and making decisions and living my life without always seeking Him first is FUTILE..
and even more :  it is DANGEROUS...

in a way, as hard as it is, it is good to see some really "great" examples very close to me of how in the end the suffering of incredible consequences that come from this kind of prideful rebelliousness torments those that have mocked God, yawned at His greatness and just ran with their pride and ego, their reckless selfishness, relying on talent, money and hard work.. never even giving God a second thought..

in my own life, I am living the consequences of the first 30 years of my life without putting God first, without surrendering to Him as my Lord and King, unknowingly, but still.... tough still at times, only bearable because of the mercy and grace my Father extends to me and my children.. because He made me His own and I am His.. striving to please Him as best as I can each day.. failing and asking for forgiveness, picked up by my merciful Father in Heaven each time and lovingly sent on my way again and again and again..

overwhelmed by His love and compassion for me I am thankful for each reminder He gives to me.. in His Word, through devotions written by godly people who are inspired by His Word.. it always comes back to this..

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 1: 1-4

Jesus, He is the Word, and He has been there from the beginning, when He thought of me, even before the creation of the world.. how can I not seek Him first at all times, look to Him to inform and guide every step that I make, every word I speak and every action I take..

it's all from Him and for Him and so all glory is His and His alone!

#SoliDeoGloria